Smiles, Cries and Sweet Silences
by yourdorkalways
Summary: When Mr.Schuester assigns a duet assignment for the Glee club, Tina is on the verge of explosion. But when she's partnered up with someone who had always just been a bystander in her life, she'll have to choose between an old past or a new future.
1. Prologue

**A/N**: Hey guys! :D A little nervous, but Im giving it a shot. This is my first Glee fanfic - er .. First EVER fanfic, so please don't be too harsh. I really appreciate all comments though. (: At first, I was kinda against the whole 'put the only 2 Asians on the show together!' concept, but now I'm totally inlove with the pair! I really hope you like it.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own any part of Glee. Because if I did, I'd put myself in the show and Finn, Mike, and Puck would be fighting over me in a pit of jello, shirtless. Just saying.

_Prologue_

"Okay guys, we're going to start working on duets for the next two weeks, and whoever does the best duet will be performing it for Regionals!" announced Mr. Schuster in a cheerful manner, as a clash of different emotions flooded the room. As the Glee members inevitably made either disdainful or joyous comments, there was one person in particular who seemed fixated on something other than music notes and lyrics. Ever since the stutter confession, Artie had been pushing Tina away deliberately. Whenever she attempted to reach her heart out to him, he did nothing more than reject it or leaving it hanging. Occasionally, they'd still maintain an awkward "what's up, not much, okay bye" conversation, but that's as far as it'd go. He just seemed so unaffected, and that killed Tina even more. Torturing herself for revealing her secret had become a daily routine, and sometimes she'd blame Artie for that matter due to the fact he couldn't just accept it: accept her.

"And to make this a little more interesting, you will all chose your partners out of this hat!" Pulling a black fedora hat from behind, Mr. Schu held out the head piece with more charisma than ever. The time between each member grabbing little white papers from the hat had passed so quickly, because now it was Tina's turn.

_Oh great_. There were three people left: Santana, the 'head bitch in charge' cheerleader who's "sexts are hard to erase", Mike, the only other Asian in Ohio that was frequently mistaken to be Tina's long lost sibling, and Artie, the guy she was so sure had cared about her more than she did herself. The guy she would've been so excited and antsy being partners with, but is now the total opposite. The guy who she mistakenly thought understood and accepted her just as she is, but honestly couldn't.

"This is going to be the best two weeks of my life," she muttered to herself, obviously irritated and pessimistic.

She slowly reached her limp hand to the hat, being careful which scrap she'd chosen. As she held the small piece of paper in her palm, she steadily unraveled her partner's name, her eyes slightly twitching as if Puck was going to throw another grape slushie in her face.

"Mike." She let out a small nervous breath, but quickly hid it with a plastered smile. Tina didn't know whether she should be happy she avoided a decade's worth of heartache, or disappointed at the many times she could've talked to Artie but had lost her chances.

_But in the end,_ Tina's thoughts began_. In the end everything will stay the same, and our 'relationship', if you can even call it that, won't change_. She pondered quietly in her plastic, maroon-colored chair. Little did she know that an ignored relationship with a fellow Glee member would change drastically.

* * *

So, I didn't really realize how short this would be(writing on paper and typing on a word document are TWO TOTALLY DIFFERENT THINGS Haha :P) but there's a reason why it's called an 'introduction', right? Basically reviews are gonna be my motivation for continuing this story, so please review. (: Oh & if youre wondering why this is rated M, don't worry. It'll progress in the near future! Thank you so much for reading! ^.^


	2. I've Lost Who I Am

**A/N: **Hey guys! :D So I decided to keep posting up chapters for 'Smile' for 2 reasons: One being that I kind of already wrote a lot of it(yee), two being that your reviews have been encouraging, even if I didn't get a a bajillion. Thank you so much. (: I will also be making chapters longer. Im extremely sorry for the really short one I wrote. That was totally my bad ._. But yes. Ill stfu.

**Disclaimer**: I die a little inside when I remember that I don't own Glee, just this story. D:

_Chapter 1_

As the chilly, frost bit wind ran through the inside of the Mckinley building, Mike Chang waited. It was already 5:07 and him and Tina planned rehearsal at 4:40 in the music room. He knew something had been up. He realized this the day before, when the club had all picked their duet partners. The whole time everyone had been socializing and gossiping, he noticed one in particular who was as quiet as a lamb. He could tell through those drained eyes of hers that Tina was upset. The way her facial expression showed nothing more but regret, to the way she slumped over lazily the time being to the way she'd stare at him with a dazed, nostalgic look. Something happened between Tina and Artie, that was for sure. Mike just didn't know what exactly.

The familiar sound of a not-so distant thought echoed around the room. "I'm so sorry Mike! I lost t-track of time and I-I didn't know -"

"It's okay," interrupting the unbalanced girl. Mike knew how much stress Tina had been through and didn't want to be the reason for her sudden outbreak of insanity. He watched enough horror movies to know that psychotic slashers always start with a tiny conflict and a careless contender. That _wasn't _going to be him.

"uh-uh okaay .." Mike's gleaming smile gave her a slight reassurance. "So should I put in the m-music?"

As they sat together in silence preparing to belt out a note, Mike felt a pang of guilt. For some reason, he couldn't bare seeing Tina so down, especially since he was for certain _what _she was down about. He felt obligated to make her happy. Besides, they weren't the closest of friends; might as well spend some time getting to know each other! So right when Tina was about to begin the first verse, he quickly rose from his seat.

"You know actually .. Let's take a day off." Tina stared at him with a puzzled look. "We have all week to practice anyway. What's one day, right?" Mike was far from cocky, but knew his charming grin and innocent puppy face were always _very _convincing.

And it was. She smiled back at him with a hint of sparkle in her eye. "Okay th-then. Where d-did you want to go?"

**

* * *

**

"Frozen yogurt on a cold day. Genius." Tina gave out a small chuckle.

"I don't care what you say, it's impossible to refuse fro yo!"

"True, true." Then just when she was an inch away from forgetting her troubles caused by that week, it came back and back-handed her in the face.

"Hey, I notice your not stuttering." Mike put all his focus from the neon yellow paper cup to look at Tina. She immediately fell in a state of fear.

"R-really? Uh-I d-didn't n-n-notice .." Her stare dropped down on her hand, looking down depressingly. _Artie. _That's all she thought.

"Oh wait! I'm sorry, it wasn't an accusation, just an observation. You didn't need to respond to it … I'm sorry .." She sensed the guilt but also the sweet sincerity trailing his voice. Silence seeped in their conversation for a good minute until she decided to build up her courage.

"Thanks." She attempted to give a reassuring smile like he'd done so many times, but obviously couldn't compete when his grin beamed at her. How the hell does he smile that! She envied that adoring smile of his, but was more than relieved when the realization that she'd be seeing that same smile for the next two weeks. Maybe he wasn't a bad partner after all.

The timid street of Lima was occupied with laughter and giggles as the two walk side by side. They came upon a chocolate brown house that smelled of incense and freshly cut grass. It laid so still, without a light in sight.

"Well I guess this is goodnight," Mike started, with a slight disappointment found in his tone of voice.

"Yeah .. I had a really good time, Mike." Even though the luminescent stars were their their only source of light, he could sense her glowing. She was happy.

The aged wood under their feet made the smallest of noise as they stood together under the dark sky. Tina slowly maneuvered toward her front door.

"Bye Mi -"

"No one's home!" He shakily cut her off.

"Huh?"

"There's n-no l-lights - It doesn't look like anyone's here. I'd feel a lot less worried if you were … if you were with me, because y-you know I wouldn't want you to be a potential victim for a psycho killer. Th- there's lots of creepos in Ohio and -"

"Sure." Tina couldn't help but giggle at how "slick" Mike was. With no hesitation, she snatched his hand into hers and started running and he followed her lead.

"Where we going?" he asked curiously.

"The park!"

* * *

So what'd you think? :D Better, improved .. ? Well either way, I hope you enjoyed it! Thank you again to those who reviewed. It made me a lot happier, and I definitely took your advice! I tried to make this chapter lengthier, but if you'd still like it to be longer just ask nicely and I'll be sure to do it. :) Favorite, review, but most of all enjoy it.


	3. Even If It Leads Nowhere

**A/N**: Hello again. (= So this is chapter 2 of Smile! I hope all of you have enjoyed this so far. Once again, thank you to all those who review and whatnot. Oh, and sorry how I message everyone who reviews LOL. I realize it gets kinda annoying, but it's just to show how I truly appreciate your words. Hope you like this one guys :D !

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Glee … sniff.

_Chapter 2_

The swings squeaked in uncoordinated harmony as they slowly swayed back and forth. It was 8:40 PM and Mike Chang and Tina Cohen-Chang have spend nearly four hours together.

"This is nice," she admitted.

Mike agreed honestly. "I know." Then once again, as Tina's worries began to carry through the breeze, it went back her direction.

"You like him don't you?"

She felt her heart drop on the tanbark. He continued on.

"Artie I mean. I can tell .. I see you stare at him. You know, in Glee .."

If they had this conversation yesterday, she would've quickly ran away. If he asked her five hours before anywhere else, she would've crawled right back into that shell of hers. Tina knew she shouldn't be so open with him, seeing as what happened with Artie, but at that second she didn't really care.

"Kind of. Well, no. Well I don't know - It's a really long story -"

"I like long stories." She stared at him a little speechless at first, but eventually smiled appreciatively once she absorbed his words.

As time flew and autumn leaves crackled on the pavement floor, two people remained the same. Their conversation had lased over an hour with relentless laughs, heartaches, reminiscent memories, but mostly a connection like no other. At the time, being vulnerable was essential.

"You like her don't you?"

"No I don't -"

'I didn't even say her name yet."

The tables turned as Tina sneakily accused him. She always knew he liked Brittany: she was tall, blonde, skinny, pretty, popular, and not to mention she _was _a cheerio after all. She assumed Mike was just following the football - cheerleader chain. She persisted with the accusation.

"Brittany .. I see you two together a lot, and you can c-completely tell from the way you l-l-look at her that .. Th-that's there's something."

For once, she didn't see a smile. She didn't see a grin that was so convincingly full of bliss. What she did see was a stressed, scared reflection of Tina. She saw him shiver, she saw him unhappy, and saw him sad. It genuinely concerned her. It was her turn to be knight and shining armor.

**

* * *

**

Without a word, he felt her gently caress his shoulder, and with that he felt trickles of comfort. It wasn't that Tina's assumptions weren't correct, it's the knowledge that his affection was so obvious that others noticed.

"You don't have to be ashamed or embarrassed. Believe me .. I f-felt like that too many times with .. With uh-Artie that I figures it's just a waste of e-emotion. Even if figuring it out m-ment two hours ago."

Mike felt a little breathless. He's never seen her so poised or confident, nor so unafraid. Her helpful words even left a lingering sensation up his spine. He wasn't the one to talk about problems or feeling but hey! There's a start for everything.

After Tina's little speech, a silence grew. But it wasn't an awkward "God I'd rather see Kurt in a leotard and leg warmers" silence , but more of a comforting, sweet silence. Suddenly, a loud buzzing noise interrupted the stillness of the night.

"Crap! It's 10:20 already!" Tina frantically gathered all her belongings while carrying her phone with the other hand, talking to her dad.

"I'll be there in a few minutes daddy, I p-promise!"

_Oh crap. It's 10:20_ Mike thought. Luckily, his parents weren't nearly as protective as hers were.

"let me take you home, it's too dark for you to walk alone," he considerately offered.

A guilty look struck Tina's face. "It's f-fine, I only live a c-couple blocks away anyway."

Once again, Mike wasn't comfortable with that proposition. He could never again feel comfortable with the idea of her being harmed. It just bothered Mike too much, and it definitely showed on his face. To the point where she can tell what was going on through his mind. She tried to slow herself down.

"I had a really good time in a really long time." She continued on. "It's late, and I only live a couple blocks away. I promise I won't die, and if I do, then frozen yogurts on me. My treat."

Mike smiled to the wit of her comment. He nodded signifying approval, and with that, she ran, slowly being swallowed by the darkness of the night.

* * *

So how are you guys liking the story so far? :D Trying to progress from my other chapters so yeah, I hope you guys liked! Thank you guys sooooooooooo much for the helpful reviews, I'm so grateful. Read and review, most importantly enjoy. :)


	4. Fell Heart Over Head

**A/N**: Yo. ;D eheh, sooo here is chapter tres! The reviews ive been getting have been SOO encouraging and just thank you so much for being supportive. Its nice to hear you guys like the stories. (: So here it is! Sorry for the late update btw. For some reason, I wasn't able to put the *** without it deleting after everytime I saved it. T_T Instead, i just put a line. I don't prefer it, but I shouldnt be picky. Hope you like!

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Glee.

_Chapter 3  
_

The following day at Glee felt either extremely different or harshly indifferent. He couldn't tell. That was until Artie wheeled in unannounced in the music room and at that very second Tina's bright facial expression turned upside down, frozen like the yogurt she promised him. Yeah, no; still the same. Mike felt a surge of humiliation as the realization bulldozered over him: _Why do I care? We spent one day together and I expect her to forget about this douche who doesn't give a shit about her feelings_, he thought.

Interrupting his train of thinking was Brittany. After the 3rd time of hearing "uh, I have to feed my rock" rejecting his invitation to watch a movie countless times, Mike figured it was time to move on. Oh, and talking to Tina helped too. Of course.

Brittany began with an airy tone, "So I hear you're on the football team." He was dumbstruck.

"Uh yeah, Britt you didn't know that? Do you even pay attention to who your cheering for --" Mike halted when a mischievous smile and clever look appeared on Tina's face. He finally caught on when she held out a thumbs up. What was she thinking!? That airy voice brought him back to reality.

"For giraffes?"

"What? Never mind -- What'd you want to ask me anyway?" getting straight to the point.

"I wanna go to the movies. 6 PM, Friday .. Bye." The frilly blonde pranced back to her fellow cheerleader friend. What the _hell _just happened? He didn't know whether to feel mad, happy, excited, disappointed …

Suddenly, Tina skips her way to his side with a face of accomplishment.

"So what do you think? All I had to do was talk about you for a little, m-mainly reminding her that you're a football p-player and how you 'have a pokemon'. Don't worry though, that'll be our secret!"

Mike still just sat there, flabbergasted as hell. No smile at sight. Tina frowned at this.

"I d-did something r-wrong, d-didn't I?"

He felt bad for having her feel this way, but couldn't honestly answer with a dignified no.

"I'm so s-sorry Mike, I th-thought you liked Britt --"

"No! I mean, yeah. Thanks Tina, you're a really good friend for that. I think I'm still shocked that I get to go out with a hot blonde cheerleader." He thoroughly repeated that sentence over and over again in his head, hoping he'd soon believe it. Hot. Blonde. Cheerleader. Hot, blonde, cheerleader. Hot blonde cheerleader. H-O-T B-L-O-N-D-E …

* * *

Why did Mike seem so upset? She thought she'd done him a favor after that conversation at the park the night before. He liked Brittany, she could tell, but why isn't he acting like it? Even though she didn't believe a word that came through his mouth, she played along. Oh, and what's with all this typical jock-talk? _Hot blonde cheerleader?_ I mean, really?!

"Alright then, I'll take your w-word for it. But I honestly th-think you deserve it. You're a .. you're a great friend to have. I've been meaning to talk to you about last night .."

That very last sentence seemed to grab Mike's attention. He suddenly sat straight, his tired eyes open wide with alertness.

"What about last night?"

"Last night .. Was more than a l-little strange. We r-really .. Really connected I guess."

Mike was becoming more and more eager with each syllable that rang through Tina's mouth.

"Um, yeah. I-I-I get what cha mean," he stammered.

Tina continued, bluntly praising him.

"I'm just saying that I'm glad t-t-to be your friend. Well if it's okay to c-call you that! I know your r-reputation's more important but your like my brother and --"

"No!" 'Jeez, this guy just _loved _interrupting me' Tina thought.

She confusingly replied. "H-huh?"

* * *

Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. Now _that _he could believe. He seriously needed to shut up for the next few decades or so, because this non-stop rambling isn't getting him anywhere except for last-minute conflicts like this. He completely wasn't thinking before speaking, especially when it came to Tina. He felt pretty bad that he continuously would snap at her but he honestly couldn't control it. _Friends? Brother?_ I mean he didn't expect an "I love you Mike Chang" but _what the hell_?! Brothers and sisters don't just go to the park close to midnight talking about relationships, love, and what not. God. Girls were beyond confusing.

But wait, he still hasn't thought of a legitimate excuse for his minor interruption. Thinking off the top of his head, he started.

"No! .. My keychain broke!" With his hands behind his back, he fiddled with the Winnie the Pooh trinket attempting to pull it apart. With much perseverance, it finally snapped in two. He held out his keychain out in front of him as proof.

"Yeah .. It was my favorite keychain .."

In his mind, he was stupefied. Keychain, really?! It was completely unnecessary and now he's going to have to deal with his 9-year-old sister who gave him the cute gift from one of those Asian, tapioca cafes.

"Aww! That's so adorable! I'm sorry about that."

Well, at least it worked.

* * *

"Ugh. Practice," he shuttered. Not that he didn't enjoy hanging out with Tina, he actually really liked it. But that's the thing; he enjoyed her company too much to his liking. Obviously, Mike had a crush on the girl and it bothered the shit out of him that within a day of spending time with her, he'd fallen for her a great deal. He knew he was way ahead of himself and way ahead of her.

While he waited patiently outside the music room, he studied the clock. 5 o'clock. Late again. Tina's been at least fifteen minutes late for rehearsal since the day they've started the duet, but he just figured it was due to homework or something. He was never really the type to be extremely attentive to the details, just the apparent picture. Finally Tina showed up, a little earlier than she had in the past but still with the same entrance: running, out of breath, and shaken. Mike started talking to spare her the words.

"Its ok, I'm not mad that your late."

"God, I'm so sorry M-mike. I really do owe you."

"Repay me by giving me a break. I honestly don't want to do anything but kick back," he suggested.

"Okay then, I can do that," she thoughtfully accepted. "Just because your keychain broke."

Thirty minutes into practice, Tina and Mike laid on the cold dusty floor of the music room. But the filth of the ground was the least of his worries. He felt so stressed out by his own emotions and just wanted time to stop. He felt like such a chick.

Turning over to her side, Tina watched him stare blankly at the ceiling, worried.

"Y-your not okay," she bluntly claimed.

She laid her warm hand on his tense shoulder.

"You can tell me about it."

Mike's stare switched from the ceiling to Tina's worried face. He hesitated, but felt he owed her that much to confide in her. Or at least make up a reason enough for her to believe it. With a sigh, he began.

"I don't know, just nervous and stressed, I guess. The date with Brittany is what I'm worried about I guess." Tina listened attentively. Man, she really _does _care.

"You see, I never exactly .. I never exactly have been on a real, _real _date before --" Somehow, his fib turned into a confession, as it was interrupted by the sight of Tina's flabbergasted face. If Mike's pride was a real human being, that sucker would have died by now. Blushing with a rosy complexion, he flipped over to face the wall, humiliated.

"Mike it's okay! You need to ch-chill out!" Even though he couldn't see her, he knew she was smiling like a little kid.

"Your experience won't matter on your d-date with Brittany, just your awesome p-personality."

He flipped over to see her face again. He secretly loved hearing Tina compliment him since he rarely ever got them. Matter of fact, he was pretty sure she was the only person who consistently made him feel important, even if they just really started talking a day ago.

"Really?"

"Yeah. You really are an amazing person, Brother." That last word slapped him right back to reality. Oh, right. _Brother._

* * *

Tina immediately covered her mouth with her sweaty palms realizing she did something wrong .. _again_. She's been feeling utterly guilty this whole day because every time she tried to make him feel happy, it did the exact opposite. She couldn't help but wonder what she was doing wrong.

"M-Mike, what am I d-doing wrong here?" She flashed an innocent puppy-dog face at him, lips pouting. He eventually gave in.

"I'm .. I'm sorry Tina. I've been acting like a such a jack ass. I've just been over-thinking the whole Brittany situation --"

"I'm serious Mike. It's going to be okay. And .. If you want, I'll give you some p-pointers about your date. I know I'm not the eh-expert on dates but I'll t-try --"

Her sentence was replaced with a tight embrace.

"Thanks Tina. A lot. I know we've just started becoming friends but your probably the most genuine friend I've had -- will ever have. Just to let you know."

Her heart was beating rapidly as his warm skin pressed against hers. A bit loss for words, she finally accepted the hug. She couldn't recall the last time someone telling her what a great friend she was, not even Artie. But she absolutely loved the feeling.

As their warm embrace started to die down, she snapped out of the little trance Mike put her in.

"Or maybe you should s-sing. It really helps me deal with any stress. Probably the reason I joined Glee."

"I actually think I'm okay. Now you on the other hand."

Tina was a little confused. The last time she checked, her and Artie weren't planning on going anywhere together.

"I d-don't know what your talking about .."

"Okay I know we're in two different situations but believe me, you need help."

Right when she was about to stop him mid-sentence and convince him he was being delusional, she stopped herself. She needed to hear what he was going to say.

"So you like him right?" Tina nodded shamefully."I know what I'm about to say is a little cheap, but treat him like crap. The fact that you pay so much attention to him .. He feeds off of it. He knows he's got you on his hold, so get off of it." She paid closer attention to his advice eagerly.

"Make him remember what he's missing out on, Tina. And trust me, he'll be eating out of your hand in no time."

She stared at him, more sure than ever.

"I'll d-do it."

Even if she did think his plan was a little desperate, she was determined to win Artie's heart, even if it meant being a little heinous.

* * *

And there you go! :D Chapter three for you guys. Longer than previous ones, so i hope you enjoyed. One more favor I have to ask of you, if you happen to see any typos please tell me so I can change it ASAP! The last chapter I found four and Im sorry about that! I know how difficult and distracting it is as a reader to have to deal with that. Thank you for reading! ^.^


	5. Where Every Problem is Gone

**A/N**: Chapter foooooo'. Pretty intense chapter, you could say, so I hope you like it. (: Thank you again for all the nice reviews! And thank you for replying to them also! Eheh, so here it goes!

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Glee, nada!

_Chapter 4_

The sunshine glimmered through the tan-colored door of the music room. Warm, sunny days in Lima were like days of Glee kids not being slushied on; a rare thing. And as people took advantage of the cold deprived weather, Mike didn't bother to. School, family, Glee, football, and girls occupied his sensed too much for him to care. So as the Glee members sat down with their friends appreciating the heat of the sun, he just sat in a chair alone, trying to fall asleep.

But the once so loud room grew silent as he heard clicks that almost sounded like tap dancing shoes. Mike turned to the door which seemed to be the object of everyone's attention and found Tina there. His jaw dropped. She was dressed in a violet dress that stopped mid-thigh and floated like a cloud. The straps of her dress were skinny, and there laid a black velvet bow covering almost all her chest, swaying from side to side. Her high heels looked about two inches tall and shined just as much as her hair did. Half her hair was propped up and held by a metallic golden pin with flowered embellishment, and the hair contained in the pin was curled to perfection. Her golden brown eyes popped with a shimmering eggplant eye shadow that laid on top of her lids, where her eyelashes curled upward in length. She was gorgeous.

"And that's how you do sunshine weather girls. If you want my card, you can find me at the corner of the music room," Kurt proudly announced. Mike didn't appreciate his boasting, but he really did have a reason to brag about his talent.

Without sense of direction and uncomfortable with the attention given to her, Mike signaled Tina to go over where he was.

She nervously whispered, "I d-don't think this is g-going to work .."

Still speechless, he swallowed. "Yeah, um .. no, it will."

He knew that Tina trusted him even if she didn't directly say it, and as much as he was touched, he hated how badly he wanted to take advantage of her trust.

Th-thanks again M-Mike."

"No problem Tina. You look .. you look great." And with that, he stood up and walked away from the scene.

* * *

She was shaken and felt as if the shivers up her spine were about to burst into small pieces. Her trust in Mike was inevitable, so she was still doubting whether her plan would work or not. But now there wasn't any turning back. It was either Winnie Artie's heart or staying at the same exact cross light she'd been on for that past weeks. With all her courage, she strutted awkwardly towards Artie's direction and called Kurt. Her voice echoed the room, intentionally being very vocal.

"Thanks K-Kurt. I've been g-getting a lot of compliments on my new l-look."

Kurt smiled, flattered. "Your welcome Tina. Your lack of eyelids made it difficult to pack on eye shadow and your extremely unattractive stutter made your lipstick smear outside those slender lips of yours but I'm honored to have been given the chance to diva you out."

Whether or not to be offended or impressed, Tina innocently giggled. Little did Kurt know that the whole time, she had been spying on Artie from the corner of her eye, checking if he'd been paying attention to her. Unfortunately, everyone had been starting at her but her object of affection. She was extremely flatted but really didn't care if Artie didn't. She was sure about what she wanted, and it was a lot more than temporary spotlight.

Giving it one more attempt, she took a close seat to Artie and gossiped with Mercedes. Gossiping had never been her expertise, but neither was getting a whole group of students to turn their heads.

"Girl, you're not gonna believe this, but I heard Puck's nasty ass talking about how he'd 'tap that'!"

"T-Tap what?"

"You don't want to know." She's never exactly heard Puck say "tap that" with Tina being the definition of "that". She tried to seem disgusted, but was secretly a little happy. As much as he was a little pervert, he was one of the most popular guys at school and hearing what he said was more of a compliment than anything.

Forgetting her initial goal, she looked for Artie. But instead of seeing him jealous and upset, all she saw were the wheels of his wheelchair leaving the spot he was at. At that moment, she literally wanted to rip off that pretty dress of hers and run away. This plan wasn't work at as she planned, and she began to feel hopeless.

Later that day when the clock read a quarter past five, her guilt got the best of her. This is the latest she's been for her and Mike's rehearsal and she felt extremely guilty about it, but she needed to do this.

She sat outside the auditorium, waiting for Artie to end his little music number with Santana. You see, for the past week this had been her daily routine but didn't have the heart to tell Mike about it. As the auditorium doors swung open in a swift motion, Tina sat up trying to seem put together.

"H-hey Art – Oh, it's you S-Santana .. Is Artie there? I n-need to t-talk to him -"

"Look Toad. Don't think I don't see you stalking my partner because I do. He's over you and your desperate attempts to talk to him so don't try. And if you think your some princess now just cause' the Glee kids stared at your God-awful make up and your saggy boobs, don't. Got it?" The monstrous cheerio emphasized her last few words with an obnoxious bob of the head.

"Oh, and for the record, don't even think twice about Puck. The last thing he wants to deal with is a stalker mongoloid with thighs as big as Death Valley." Finalizing her words, she shoved Tina with her arms crossed and strutted making her way out of the building.

She couldn't really believe what just happened. As she stood there emotionless, Santana's words slowly made their way to her. And it hit her hard. She swore her heart just fell out of her chest and she felt this sharp agony right to her stomach. Letting a tear or two fall, she wiped her misty eyes. This wasn't going to bring her down. Besides, Santana was just being bitter due to the fact she still had feelings for Puck. And until she stopped those feelings, she wouldn't stop trying to destroy everyone's life. She could never understand how Mike could get along with people like that.

Trying to build up her courage again, she stormed into the spaced-out auditorium only to find Artie right in front of her. Even if things weren't the same with him, she always enjoyed the sight of his nerdy thin-framed glasses and navy blue suspenders.

"Hi Artie! I n-needed to -"

"Sorry Tina, gotta go." As he tried to roll always, she immediately cut his trail off.

"No Artie .. I mean I r-really have to talk to you."

"Not right now. How about -"

"You must th-think I'm stupid if you think I believe y-you. So your gonna tell m-me that you don't have time when we b-both know you just hate seeing me -"

"Enough Tina. Let me go." He was obviously irritated, but she persisted.

"No! Because I care about you, and I want thing back the way they were! I'm s-so tired of you ignoring me when for the past week I've been feeling terrible!"

"I don't want anything to do with you Tina, now leave me alone. You're the only person who would take me avoiding them as a sign that I want to talk to them. This conversation is over!" His raised voice filled the big empty room, bouncing off the walls. She'd never seen Artie so angry, so mad. Feeling more desperate than ever, she fell down on her knees devastated. She wasn't going to lose out on him.

* * *

_It's been 40 minutes, what's taking Tina so long?_ He was used to her fifteen minute tardiness, but something's wrong. Mike scavenged the Mckinley buildings, checking the library all the way to the parking lot. Making his way back to the music room in hope that she'd be there, he started to hear shouting and a bunch of raucous. It sounded like it was coming from the auditorium. Slowly walking to the area, the cries and yells became more vivid.

"Please Tina, get off the ground."

Oh God. I thought I told her to pretend he was crap! He thought. His slow walk turned into a fast jog as he was getting close and close to those aged wooden doors. Without them noticing, he quietly pushed them open. It was the worst picture: Tina on her knees crying, begging for Artie's forgiveness. Her once so precise makeup ran through her pale porcelain skin causing her face to darken. Artie's face was blinded with anger and frustration as well as his voice.

"Because you lied to me Tina! You're a coward and can't even face your own fears when there's people who have no other choice. Your fake stutter makes you look- -"

"Achoo!" Mike's nasals were being tickled by the accumulation of dust. Someone really needed to clean up around there. "They really need to clean this room," he said lamely.

"I was about to leave anyway," Artie said, trying to cool down. While Mike tried to piece everything he just saw, all he really saw was Tina on her knees, wiping her tears, barely catching her breath. This killed him.

Running to the door, he abruptly stopped Artie, pushing his wheel chair slightly backward.

"Not you too," Artie said, smug.

"Tina, come here." She looked at him confusingly.

"Look, I've never beat up a cripple before but there's a first time for everything," Mike threatened, clenching his fist at his side.

"M-Mike, it's okay- -"

"If you ever look at her, yell at her, talk to her the way you did, I will sock you so hard that you'll be able to walk again, okay?" Everything around him blurred from the anger that flowed through his veins.

Terrified and equally angered, Artie avoided his words and looked at Tina's way.

"We're done."

Mike's fury was uncontrollable and left all his surroundings silent. He turned around only to see Tina lying on the floor, tears flooding her face. He rushed to her side in no time.

"Tina, I'm .. I'm so sorry," he said, with guilt and sympathy in each word. This didn't really matter to her though. The closest thing to a word that came out her mouth were "uh", "I", and "eh", and even then she couldn't stop the tears. But what bothered Mike wasn't the lack of words or the endless crying nor the fact that she acted like he didn't exist, but how he let her believe that she could win Artie back. He raised her hopes and was the reason why she sat on the scratched floor of the deserted auditorium, or so he believed.

Then out of nowhere, his feet started to move in fluid movement that somehow followed an absent rhythm, and this immediately caught Tina's attention. After about 20 seconds of dancing, his lips started coordinating along with his movements.

"_Weak, I have been crying and crying for weeks, How'd I survive when I could barely speak, barely eat, on my knees_,"

"But that's the moment you came to me, I don't know what your love has done to me, think I'm invincible now I see, through the me I used to be." It was sort of a miracle that his plan worked so well. He finally broke her silence. The two symphonized, combining both voices as one.

"_You changed my whole life_,"

"Don't know what your doing to me with you love-"

"_Your love_,"

"I'm feeling all superhuman you did this to me, superhuman heart beats in me, nothing can stop me here with you!"

"_Superhuman_." At that moment, Mike was lost.

She struggled to stand up while singing the crisp words for their duet. Her voice was very timid but grew with more power as each note went on. Making their way to the bridge, Tina was finally able to walk circles around him.

* * *

"_It's not a bird, not a plane, it's my heart and it's _-"

"Going gone away," colliding into his last words.

"_My only weakness is_- "

"You,"

"_Only reason is_ -"

"You,"

"_Every minute with you I feel like I can do _-"

"_Anything_." Their voices slowly faded, preparing for the over bearing note.

"Going, going I'm gone away! Love!" They harmonized so fluently and fluidly that they created their own type of rhythm, even if it was in acapella.

"_You changed my whole life _-"

"Life -"

"_I'm feeling all superhuman_-"

"You did this to me oh!"

"_Superhuman heart beats in me, nothing can stop me here with you_ -"They joined together lastly.

"Superhuman, _ooh_."

Their panting was so heavily breathed as they faced each other, barely a few inches separating the two. Their faces were aimed down but slowly made their way to each other. Both were breathless.

"Good job," Mike muttered, his warm breath brushing over Tina's neck.

And just as she was about to say something, she left. Her feet shuffled toward the exit door and managed to throw out a "Gotta go, bye." As the doors closed shut, his eyes were glued to them. As the once so colorful-sounded room thickened with silence, his ears deafened. As she left him stranded, his heart broke just a little more than his cheap, Winnie the Pooh keychain.

* * *

So what'd you think hmm? :D Very dramatic chapter though I enjoyed writing it superduper much! ALOOTT longer than other ones, so I hope it added more rather than took away from the story. The song featured in this chapter was **Superhuman **by **Keri Hilson **& **Chris Brown.** So check that out too! I thought it explained their relationship perfectly. Remember, if there are any mistakes I made in spelling or anything, don't be shy to message me & gimme a little notice! :D I'll be more than happy to change it. Thanks guys! :D


	6. Heroes Die When They Ignore the Cause

**A/N**: Heeey all of you. (= So WOOO, I'M ON SUMMER VACATION! :D This is Chapter 5 for all of you who've been waiting! Thank you again for all the really nice reviews from previous chapters, especially Chapter 4. I was in awe just reading them. =) Especially the ones that were telling me that I inspired them to write their OWN stories! You know who you are. So here it goes.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Glee.

_Chapter 5_

As she waited for the seven o'clock bus, Tina shed a small tear. The guilt ate her up. She was being so unappreciative to Mike even after all he's done for her: easily forgiving her late rehearsal drop-ins, giving her helpful advice, and defending her when she was at her weakest. Honestly, she didn't know herself why she always had to leave him like that. She just figured that she was too fond that with that sort of routine.

While the previously pastel sky transitioned to a darker shade of blue, a light bulb went off. Her eyes and lips lit up with brilliance.

"I'll get him a new keychain!" she thought out loud. Sure, it seemed corny, yes it sounded minor and small, but she recalled him explaining how important it was to him. None of it really ever made sense to her, but oddly enough, it sounded special to him.

She double checked her cell phone for the time and saw it was only 7:15. She'd have a good amount of time to find a close-to-perfect trinket, but she was stumped on where to go first. As the blue and white striped vehicle approached her, she randomly decided where she'd look first. She took a step on the dirty metal staircase and grimy bus doors closed behind her.

On her way toward the local mall, she fit in some extra think time. By that, she meant Artie. By Artie she meant the guy who broke her heart reckless. And by reckless, she meant what she was feeling. There was no doubt that her and Mike's rehearsal was special and nonetheless helpful, but it didn't replace the pain and agony she felt right before that. That was possibly the first time she'd ever seen Artie so angry. His eyes grew narrow with fury and his hands gripped the sides of his wheelchair with frustration. Just thinking about it made her tear up and lead her to feel that stringing feeling right to her stomach. So as the engine quieted down ready to park, Tina decided to wrap up her final thoughts of Artie for good. She knew it'd be easier said than done, but it was a start. After all, she wouldn't want Mike's efforts to be without use.

Taking her first step off the vehicle, she held her head up high with some dignity. Her last minute decision sparked some excitement in her. Although not the most prepared decision, she was prepared for a good future to come. A new life without Artie wouldn't be half bad - Well, it was livable.

Pushing the crystal-clear entrance doors beamed out the most fresh and radiant light. She swore she saw angels gliding above her head. _The mall._ Oh gosh, did she love this place. Curiously exploring the variety of shops, she'd completely forgotten her objective. After each stop she'd made she came out empty-handed, not finding a single thing close to extravagant compared to his keychain. She'd wandered around the mall for 40 minutes and still nothing. She could see some stores sweeping their floors and their metallic gates getting closer and closer to the ground as workers eyed the clocks, waiting for that short hand of the clock to hit 9. In the end, she gave up. Walking slumped over, Tina exited the heaven she was once in and went to the bus stop. She was really hoping to find a nice gift for Mike to make it up for her lack of friendship but apparently, her efforts didn't pay off. Even if she _was _over-reacting a bit, she felt a little hurt that she couldn't even get a sensible gift for him.

As she stepped out from the bus, she inhaled a big gulp of pine tree-scented air. She took her cell phone out for the time. _9:15_. She didn't receive any worried calls from her dad, no urgent text messages from her fellow Glee friends, and nothing that would slightly entertain her at home. Because of this she decided to roam around the core of her small town.

The sky above her was dark blue with sparkles of pale yellow glitter and a securing wind ran through her silky black hair. At that moment she kind of had a sweet appreciation for Lima. It definitely wasn't a glamorous Hollywood nor was it a posh New York City, but it was calming and comforting, especially on nights like this. Just like the first time her and Mike went to the park and talked. What she felt that night was probably the best explanation of her favorite town.

Entangled in her thoughts, Tina walked aimlessly through the streets. There in front of her was a small shop with bright translucent lights radiating from the inside. On top of the store laid their store name in thick candy-apple colored font "THE THRIFTY THINGS IN LIFE." Although she wasn't the biggest fan for their title, she adored the visual she had from the outside. The most random trinkets sat on polished wooden shelves, ranging from eccentric piggy banks to fancy-looking bamboo sticks in flower pots made of clay. Looking at the entrance doors, she found the sign for their closing times. It read 9:40 and another trickle of hope sparked in her.

She jumped inside the eye-catching shop and explored around. She was amazed by how so many different and unique items there were, and it definitely helped that they were most of them were under ten bucks. But although most everything was extremely luring she couldn't find the 'right one'. Right then, her eyes gravitated toward a book with a plastic full of vibrant-colored thread.

"_How to Make Threaded Bracelets,_" she read quietly. That was it! She was going to make Mike a friendship bracelet! The idea was silly but she thought it was sweet and sensible, and it didn't seem like she spent hours trying to find the perfect gift(even if she, uh, did). She brought the six dollar item to the register and took a crinkled up ten dollar bill out.

* * *

He looked up at the white ceiling, turning and flipping from one side to the other. Many thoughts ran through his mind that night, thoughts he wanted to avoid. It was a quarter to two, and still, he couldn't get himself to sleep, nonetheless close his eyes and not see her face. Every time he blinked he'd feel a sharp pain of agony and rejection. Watching those doors swing open and close shut replayed over and over again. He flashbacked to that very moment on stage. After watching Tina abandon him, he just stayed in the same spot for a good fifteen minutes, feet paved on the floor. His eyes would focus on the accumulated dust on the ground, then back to the exit doors in hope of her standing at the entrance. But she never came. And he never left. Not for the next hour or so, until he gave up like he'd tried not to do for Tina.

Finally at exactly 2:40 in the morning, he made his decision. No more nice Mike. No more waiting in the music room for over half an hour for nothing. _No more falling for girls out of reach, and definitely no more putting my heart way out there just for it to be trampled on_. A couple days ago he was just hung up about Brittany, and now there he is, more whooped than ever. Repeating the idea over and over in his head, he satisfyingly closed his eyes. After all that thinking, he really needed to just sleep on it.

But then he remembered an important date that was to happen tomorrow afternoon.

"Shit, I forgot. I have a date with Brittany," Mike sighed out.

_Well, maybe this could be a good thing for me._ _Maybe I need to get back in the game_, he thought. Even if Brittany was a lot dumber than Tina and couldn't sing as well as her, she was still kind of hot. Even if Tina was so much more talented and nicer than Britt was, she was still a cheerio. Even if he connected with Tina so much more than he had with Brittany and she made him the happiest guy ever, him and Brittany _should _be good together. Football player, cheerleader; Its all apart of the package.

Moments away from drifting to a five hour sleep, he felt an abrupt vibration from his cell phone. He opened his eyes, curious to see who could be calling him at that hour. Mike made a face when he saw an unfamiliar number. He slid his phone open lousily, predicting it was just another marketing person or someone calling the wrong number.

"Hey, uh .. I think you've got the wrong –"

"Mike?"

On the other side of the line, he heard a shaky, girly voice. As he realized who owned that familiar voice, he heard his heart tear into small pieces. This was the last thing he needed.

* * *

"T-Tina? Are you okay?"

"No. I mean, yeah, I'm fine."

"Did anything happen? Are you hurt?" he asked, worried.

"It's okay Mike, don't worry." She couldn't tell whether she was more relieved at the fact he still cared for her or the fact he was still seemingly wide awake.

"Err .. Can you j-just kind of look outside your window?" she awkwardly asked.

"Wait .. Huh?"

It was 2:50 in the morning and Tina was standing outside the Chang's residence. Well, the other Changs.

* * *

Tried to yaknow, leave a little cliff hanger there LOL. ;D Well I just realized how kinda boring this chapter could have been for some .. Sorry about that. T_T I've been messing up a lot. But I'll post the next chapter up .. much sooner than I have with previous ones haha. & As always, if you happen to see any spelling errors or anything along those lines, I insist; please message me about it. It would really help me out. :/ So yes, I hope you enjoyed!


	7. Don't Say I'm Falling In Love

**A/N**: So I'm very very glad that many of you liked the last chapter. ^_^ It always makes me happy to hear that people enjoy this story even more, it really does! Oh, and I've also changed the chapter titles for well, the chapters because I thought saying the chapter number was way too boring. Instead, I replaced it with lyrics of the songs I listen to that inspire me to write each chapter. (: If you wanna know what song it is, just message me & I'll be glad to share my beloved songs! :D That's all I have to say so far though, so enjoy this chapter as much as you have with others. And if not, more.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Glee. And if I did, it'd definitely be rated MA. HAHAHA

_

* * *

_

_Chapter 6_

"Just do it," she slightly snapped. "It's c-cold and windy."

And with that, her eyes caught a glimpse of light through one of the curtain-covered windows. As she stared, she could see the warm vanilla curtains sway to the side. Mike's face appeared to be somewhat flabbergasted, astonished, surprised .. Beeeep. Suddenly a loud ringing sound ran through the phone in place of Mike's voice. Now, the vanilla curtains were back in sight, but he was not. Finally she was lead to their entrance by their brightly shining porch light. Mike had dashed to her side faster than the polished wooden doors swung open with his red, plaid-boxers, a white tank top, and a blue raggedy blanket. Out of breath, he swiftly covered her with the blanket and quickly led her inside the house.

He sat her down on a firm, leather couch and walked around the room, stressed. Maybe she should've just stayed home and gave the bracelet to him tomorrow morning, but she thought he'd appreciate it. She guessed wrong. Once he was able to get his words out, he furiously yelled, "What do you think you're doing? It's cold and late. You have no reason to be here!"

He didn't know whether that translated into "What do you think you're doing outside alone at two in the morning" or "What do you think you're doing smashing my heart into little bits of pieces?" He had a strong hunch though.

Feeling a little reckless and the complete opposite of put-together, Mike tried to relax by pacing back and forth. Random outburst of anger weren't his thing, especially around girls. Tina's face revealed both humiliation and regret. She uneasily gaped at the tan, furry carpet in shame.

"I j-just can't seem to d-do anything right can I?" She sniffed, trying to hide her visible tears. "M-maybe this wasn't a g-good idea."

Throwing the cozy comforter from her tense body, she stood up attempting to make a run for it. Taking the small pink plastic bad she brought, she walked away.

It took a couple of moments to let it sink in. He really didn't like it when Tina did this to him. You know, always walking away from him, avoiding him like that's the only option necessary. He didn't like it one bit. So as she neared the door, Mike rushed toward her direction and blocked any chance of her leaving his sight. For a second, they stood frozen against the door, quiet. It was breaking his heart once again to see little droplets stain her pink cheeks. She lifted her hand to wipe aside her tears, but Mike's hand stopped it from reaching her face. His rough though consoling thumb gently brushed her tears away but the silence still stood.

"So .. What's in the bag?" He smiled innocently. She was back.

"Here." Mike handed her a mug of hot coco as she sat on the cold exterior of his couch.

"Thanks."

"No problem. So are you feeling better? Let me take your temperature again."

He pulled out a thermometer, sat criss-crossed right in front of her and lightly slid the cold device in her mouth.

"99.8 degrees. Could be lower, but better than before."

He leaned over, placing his palm on her forehead. Her eyes looked straight up as if she could look at the top of her head, and he thought it was the cutest thing.

"A little warm. You'll survive though," he beamed.

"Y-You think so?"

"I really do," leering with reassurance.

A warm silence seeped between them, but as Tina began to sip the soothing liquid down, she spoke, letting the warmth of the cocoa relieve her chilled face.

"I'm s-sorry .. For a lot of th-things." He listened. "At the auditorium, I knew it t-took you a lot to stand up for m-me, but then I just abandoned you, and now I wake you up in the middle of the night and get sick .. And here you are, taking c-care of me," she frowned, compressing the eggplant purple cup tightly.

Mike knew she was genuinely sorry. That her apology was more than just running words. He could tell just by the way she was so afraid of him not wanting her back that she could barely look at him straight in the eye with tearing up.

Sighing happy, he placed his hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't worry. I know you're still shaken up about the whole Artie thing. And stop crying, you've been through enough!" He handed her a cleenex then took another one to wipe her tears himself.

"No Mike! No, you always l-let me get my way -"

He grabbed her hand and held it securely. He could feel her body stiffen.

"I mean it. You don't have to be so .. so protective when it comes to me." His words were so crisp and full, it almost sounded like a rhythm. "You're I think the only person I can talk to, who I can be with without feeling like I need to prove something." He felt her heavy stare on top of him.

"You never think about yourself. Like, ever. You're always so selfless, so just .. just let me take care of you. Because I want to. Because you need that. Because you're .." He was deep in thought, choosing each word carefully.

"You're like a sister."

* * *

_Um, sister? Do you really want another one of those! _Tina thought. After all this satisfying tension, that last word swerved everything in the wrong direction.

Trying to not seem evident, she spoke. "Sister .. I like it."

_My Asian ass I like it. _She was dieing. She didn't just dislike the name and meaning of the word sister, she _hated _it. Keeping herself preoccupied she grabbed her plastic bag.

"Okay so um c-close your eyes." She really hoped this cheesy plan of hers would work. Apparently, plans never really worked out for her, but this time she hoped it would be an exception. People nowadays like braided bracelets, right? Mike hesitated to follow her order, but he eventually surrendered.

"Oh, and stick your arm out," she perkily added. He opened his eyes worriedly.

"What the _hell _are you going to do to me woman? I swear, if you plan on sneezing on my hand or licking my hand I'm fine without a gift- "

"Shush!" Tina interrupted, laughing all the while.

"Just do it!" she jokingly demanded.

"Fine." She took out an appealingly bright bracelet from the wrinkled plastic, observing it before tying it around his wrist. It was made by three different colored strings; Orange, because of his favorite plaid shirt. Blue, because when she painted her nails "Electrifying Blue" he complimented them. And yellow, because his smile reminded her of that color. Oh, and he's Asian.

She securely tied the bracelet onto him, pride lifting up her chin.

"Okay, so you can look now." He opened his eyes excitedly. That was until he saw what was stuck on his arm. Tina was worried and embarrassed, blushing uncontrollably. But to her surprise, Mike had the biggest smile on his face and even started to laugh.

"Tina, it's cute. I love it." His arms ate her up. "But what for?"

"I felt bad about you k-keychain so I made th-them."

* * *

He was already giggly and content, but inside his mind he was literally "rolling on the floor laughing." He really tried not to make himself seem so obvious, but he couldn't help but smile. He was kind of glad he thought of that lame excuse looking back on it now. If he not, he would've be spending his Thursday night with her. With Tina.

"Th-Thanks Tina. I really love it."

"You're welcome. So um, it's getting late. Well, getting lat_er_. I g-guess I'll head out now and let you sleep."

By that time, the once so perfect weather turned against them. Now the wind was so rapid and he swore he felt some rain on his head while he was outside. Or that's what he convinced him to believe.

He could sense that Tina wasn't up for the idea of walking back home in this weather, and neither was he.

"Don't be silly. It's 2:55 in the morning, cold, raining, dark, and it'll take you atleast half an hour to walk to your house. And you're sick, remember?"

"Won't your parents be a little w-weird about it?"

"My mom's not home and my dad .. Doesn't show up too often. It's just me and my little sister."

Tina's smile seemed to fade more and more as his explanation progressed. Trying to distract her, he kept rambling.

"I have extra blankets and pillows upstairs. I'll give you one of my shirts and some shorts too. We have extra toothbrushes in the bathroom. So yeah, just make yourself at home."

* * *

As she stepped into the robot-covered boxers and slid in the over-sized navy green V-neck, she wrapped her arms around herself tightly. Even being in his clothes made her feel all the more safe. She liked how the scent of his home lingered all over her skin, the way the fabric hugged her gently, the comfort and the warmth from his clothing .. Interrupting her sensual thoughts was a quiet knock on the bathroom door.

"Sorry Mike, I was just changing -"

Instead of seeing a tall, cute teenage boy she saw a small, even cuter little girl. Her hair was shiny and sleek and her bangs were swept to her forehead. She had the most adorable, most innocent face. In her hand she held a torn up Hello Kitty stuffed animal.

Tina smiled at the confused little girl. "Are you Mike's little sister?" She nodded.

"Oh, well your very pretty! What's your name?" Tina knew a thing or two about children, and she's been blessed with the knowledge of knowing that they love attention.

The girl smiled shyly, clearing her voice before speaking. "m-my brother told me not to t-talk to strangers." Tina giggled at the thought of Mike being so motherly-like. Then again, he _is _always fixing her shirt if it's wrinkled, and he always brushes my hair if it's a little messed up, she thought.

"Your brother taught you well. But I'm Tina. You're not much of a stranger to me," bending now to offer her hand to shake. Surprisingly, she took it.

"My n-name's Leila. But don't tell my b-brother I told you. He might put me on time-out!" _This little girl is very charming. Definitely takes it from her brother._

"Leila .. I like that. You know I used to have a pet hamster named Lelia. But he wasn't as pretty or polite as you. Unless you bathe in your pee while I talk to you, but I'm pretty sure your brother taught you better than that!" The tiny girl giggled enthusiastically. Tina couldn't help but grin at the fact that she had the same contagious smile as Mike. It had the same effect on her.

"And who's this … ?" pointing at her stuffed animal.

"Her name's K-Kitty."

"Oh, well it's nice to meet you Kitty," shaking the stuffed animal's paw. Leila smiled widely again.

"And who gave you Kitty?" Tina curiously asked.

"D-Daddy did." Tina's smile slowly faded, as did Leila's.

"Lei, are you alright?" Mike's voice grew closer and closer. He seemed so surprised when he saw Tina. Her stare fell down immediately as well as her confidence level. _God, I look like shit. I knew I should've just slept with my makeup on .._

* * *

_Tina looks amazingly .. Hot, _Mike thought to himself. _She looks like one of those girls from Maxim, except not naked. _He felt guilty and corrupted for thinking this next to his oh-so innocent 6 year old sister. But oh man, he just couldn't help it; after all, he was a teenager guy anyway.

"I'm th-thirsty," Leila said, breaking the awkward stare between Mike and Tina. He patted her head affectionately and smiled.

"Okay, let's go downstairs." He took her hand and walked downstairs. Looking back at Tina, he signaled her to the room on the right. She nodded.

"So what did you want to drink?" Mike asked sweetly.

"Apple j-juice."

"Sounds good." He propped her up on the tall, kitchen chair. "So what do you think of Tina, Lei?"

"She's n-nice. I a-approve of her."

"Ooh, approve huh? Big word for – Wait, huh?" He was puzzled and turned cotton candy pink immediately.

"As your girlfriend, silly!" Leila teased her big brother. He never thought 6-year-olds could be so brutal.

"She's not my girlfriend, we're just friends .."

The little girl started to think. "Hmm, d-delusional I see."

"Where are all these words coming from!" he asked, chuckling.

"TV," sipping her juice box.

_I hate kids.  
_

After tucking his little sister into bed, Mike headed straight into his room. For some reason, he was so antsy to see her in his room. Well, he was pretty sure it was well-related to that thought of her looking really hot and almost porn star-like. Something along those lines.

And not to his surprise, she was laying on his bed, on her back, shoulders bare due to the size of the shirt he lent her. It was like he was testing himself to see how long it would last for him to .. You know.

Finally noticing his presence, Tina immediately stood up from the bed.

"Sorry, I just didn't know where t-to go exactly." Trying to gain some self-control, he stuttered. Bad.

"Uh, n-no, it's, it's fine. You can s-sleep on my bed." She gave him a muddled look.

"I'll just sleep on the floor," he added.

"Um, excuse me? No you're not! I'm the g-guest, you're doing me a favor by -" Suddenly, a loud 'achoo!' came straight from Tina's bright pink nose.

"And you're sick. I can't let you a sick person sleep on my floor! You'll get it dirty. I mean I do have to walk here every day." She snickered. "Besides, I have a great view of Ohio through this window anyway."

* * *

_This is kinda .. perfect_, Tina thought. _Me, Mike, in his room, late night, wrapped in his bed sheets and clothes. _She swore it was like a movie, minus the uncontrollable snot and unattractive eye bags.

A good 10 minutes pass and shutting her eyes tight nor counting sheep couldn't get her to sleep. Even after taking three hours to make those stupid bracelets, she couldn't seem to shut her eyes peacefully. Tossing to her left side, she stared at Mike. Apparently he couldn't sleep either. He was aimlessly looking out the window, so amazed by the shining stars and glimmering moon. Tina thought it was nice to know someone who appreciated their town as much as he did. Trying to grab his attention, Tina threw one of his over-sized pillows at him.

"Mike!" she loudly whispered. He turned around to look at her after being hit with the pillow.

"Ow," he exaggerated.

"You can't sleep either?" Tina asked.

"Nah. Um, I'm kind of wide awake," he sighed.

"Yeah I know. It's already .." She checked her dying phone for the time. "It's already 3:32 in the morning .. four more hours til' we have to get up."

"3:32 already!"

"Yup. Wait, um, M-Mike?" She called out eagerly.

"What's up Tina?"

"Did you like, uh .. Want to l-lay down with me? It's kind of ha-hard to hear what you're saying from th-there and since we both can't sleep .." He looked at her confusingly.

She didn't know whether that translated into "want to lay down with me and just talk?" or "want to lay down with me, tear off my shirt and make sweet, steamy love to me?" She herself wasn't all that sure, but it was clear to her she wouldn't mind either choice.

He seemed hesitant at first, but he smiled it off and was quickly lying beside her, staring at her right in the eye. For a moment she held in her breath. She then later realized how stupid that was because she couldn't let out her breath without seeming like she just ran a mile or two.

"Are you okay Tina? You sound really tired like you just ran a few miles."

_Dammit_. Not one mile, not two miles, but a few. Tina tried to change the subject.

"So any plans for t-tomorrow -"

"Okay before we start acting like today never happened, I have a question. Please though, if you could just answer honestly."

She heavily gulped anticipating the worst.

"You don't really have a stutter, do you?"

Her eyes widened with worry. _Oh dear God, please, not another person leaving me. _The thought of losing Mike scared Tina to death. It frightened her so much that her eyes swelled with tears of her new-found fear. She quickly turned to the wall, avoiding his deep stare.

"I'm sorry Mike .. Really. I didn't know how to tell you. I was so scared you'd do the same thing Artie did and .. I understand if you never wanna look at me, nonetheless sing with me, nonetheless dance with me, nonetheless sleep with me – I mean, l-lay down with me, not sleep _sleep _with me – See, I can't say or do anything right," voice trembling, not allowing Mike to speak. She was so irritated and frustrated with herself. Her once subtle cry quickly turned into a whopping sob. She used his fluffy, red pillow as a cleenex, muffling her voice.

He gently rubbed her back to soothe the troubled girl, all that did was made her cry harder. He started playing and fiddling with her tossled hair.

"Is that what all that drama in the auditorium was about?" She struggled to nod.

"Well, you know what? He's a jackass. Stutter or not, you're one of the coolest people I know. He should be the one on his knees, believe me."

"Really?" she asked.

"You have to look at me first. Then I'll tell you."

She slowly rotated head first, no longer sobbing. He smiled, laughing at her eager facial expression.

"Yeah. Definitely. And I'll um, never leave you .. Ever."

* * *

:) yaaay for new chapter! Haha, I hope you liked it. It was a little longer than other ones and also pretty dramatic. Thank you again for all the nice comments you guys leave me, really! You guys are the sweetest and I just wanted to let all of you know how much I truly appreciate it. Not trying to be cheesy or anything LOL. But yeah. Hope you liked ^_^


	8. I'll be the Embrace that Keeps You Warm

**A/N**: Heey there! =) Nothing new to say here. Thank you all again for such sweet and nice reviews! You guys are the best! Once again, I put new chapter titles just to make it a little 'funner' I guess. They're songs I listen to that inspired each chapter so go ahead & ask me what songs they are (: I don't bite! Oh and I hope you guys don't mind the longer chapters! If you'd like them to be shorter or anything, you can always tell me! I hope you guys enjoy! ^_^

**Disclaimer**: If I owned Glee, Rachel and Finn would be the 2nd hottest couple next to Mike & Tina .. So yeah, no. I don't own it.

_Chapter 7_

He didn't know how capable he was of being so emotional and sentimental, and to be perfectly honest it was freaking the living shit out of him.

"Sorry. I'm a cry baby aren't I?" Tina said, a little humbled.

"Just a little!" They timidly laughed.

"So do you have any plans for tomorrow?"

Before he answered that question with a "nothing much," he instantly remembered a crucial detail.

"Um, yeah actually! Remember when you kind of set me and Brittany up? Well we're going on a date."

Tina stayed quiet as Mike tried to stay nonchalant.

"Shouldn't be too bad, I mean I've been trying to get at her for a while now .."

"Yeah, I hope you have fun. You two are .." She remarked hesitantly. "Perfect for each other."

The way she spoke, she seemed so solemn and down. He both disliked and liked it. She seemed almost jealous and surely, he'd felt a little better about their "situation." He felt guilty though for feeling so egotistical.

"Yeah, we're going to eat dinner. Or maybe a movie. Britt doesn't seem like too much of a talker anyway," trying to lighten up the mood, although she sharply replied. "You can say that again."

Ok, so he didn't know whether it was him or not but it sounded like Tina wanted to bite Brittany's head off.

"Just curious, but do you even really like her?" she snapped. Mike wasn't expecting _that _one!

Putting herself back in order, she calmly explained. "I mean I know you do. But is it like how you feel about .. A PB&J sandwich or a cheeseburger? The colors blue and red, or dancing and playing football? – Do you th-think it's love?"

He deliberately thought about what he was going to say although inside, he already knew what his definite answer was.

"Well, yeah I do. But there's so many definitions of love; Google it, there's like at least a gazillion results I swear!" She smiled at his innocent observation. "But how I love PB&J is different from how I love a cheeseburger, or how I love blue and red and dancing and football. When you think about it, a cheeseburger isn't all that much different from the color red and football. I mean, yeah sure, you can obviously pick out the differences but I love them the same way. They're all good in their own way, and you really like them when you first start out, but then once you keep getting more and more .. Eventually, you get a little tired of it." She listened carefully. "But with PB&J, blue, and dancing? Oh, it will always be there for you. All of them are so underrated but that's what's kind of awesome about them. You can only experience how .. Amazing, and cool they are when others can't because their scared to take a chance. Their something I learned that I can't live without .. Not a single minute."

Tina's smile drastically shipped sail but all it did was ascend through her eyes. He didn't know what he meant, if it was literal or metaphorical or even if it was just his hunger speaking, but he didn't mind the possibilities that might've ran through her head.

"Then there's Britt. I actually have learned to love her. A lot. As a friend. But to be honest, I learned that I really can't love her the way I love dance, or the color blue, or PB&J .. I just don't feel it the same way."

"You must really love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, huh?" She said lightly, giggling.

"Then why are you going on a date with her?" continuing their conversation topic.

"Because you set us up, remember?"

He could tell that she really felt like an idiot. There she was, aggressively interrogating him, only to find out she'd set up her own defeat. It was amusing to say the least.

"Oh yeah huh .."

"uh huh," he mocked her, smiling.

"So what do you think your gonna do about Artie?" casually bringing in the other subject matter. She squinted her eyes in thought.

"The only thing I haven't tried so far: forgetting him."

* * *

Hearing herself say those words out loud took a lot out of her. It was like she just found out frozen yogurt was made by enslaved children working hours just to satisfy her sweet tooth. All she could do now was accept it and move on.

She figured Mike heard her heart crack a little because he maneuvered his whole body closer to her, keeping her warm, keeping her safe. He stared at her with a puppy dog face and persisted as if Tina spoke the language of different-facial-expressions-that-sucker-people-in-doing-things, but although not a word was spoken, it was just enough to feel protected. She loved Artie, there was no argument about that, but with Mike by her side, she knew it would be better. Everything would be better.

"Do you miss him?" Mike asked sensitively.

"Honestly .." She rested her head onto his naked, broad shoulder. "Not at this moment."

He seemed a little shocked to hear her words, but more so at peace. Hearing her say that was all he needed and wanted to hear, and she knew it.

After a brief moment of pure silence, Tina thoughtfully looked up at Mike's content face while she continued to rest on his shoulder.

"Your sister .. You guys are so related."

Smiling, he replied, "Is that a good thing?"

"Great thing," admiringly staring at his sincere smile only to remind herself.

The very thought that rested in Tina's mind was touchy, she knew, but she really needed to know. So she took a chance.

"Mike, what's going on with your dad?" She'd tried to sound casual but at the same time concerned. She didn't want to seem like she was butting in, but didn't want to seem careless either.

She could feel his shoulder tense. His jaw was clenched and his skin rough with goose bumps. Realizing that it may have not been the smartest idea to ask, she started her four part apology. "I'm sorry Mike, I shouldn't have asked –"

"He left right after Leila's third birthday. I was 13 at the time," voice shaking. Tina had a hunch Mike had never really talked about his family issues much, so she decided it'd be best just to nod and lend an open ear for now.

"I remember that night really well. He had his suitcases at his side and came into Lei's room and gave her a Hello Kitty stuffed animal. Then when she asked where he was going, he said he was going on a business trip and kissed her goodnight. I knew it was all a lie and he knew I did too. But the only thing he gave me when he left was a half-assed wave goodbye. Not a smile, just a little wave."

At this point, his endearing smile had been long gone and formed into a dead frown. She pulled into him a little closer, rubbing her feet with his for added comfort.

"You know he never brought me to the park or asked how my day was? And he's never told me how proud he was of me. I remember when I was 11, I got a B+ on this essay thing I had and I was so excited to show my dad. The only thing he said was 'try harder' then left for work."

He whimpered a little bit, and suddenly she could feel damp drops on her cheek but for once, she wasn't the one generating them. The sight of Mike's tears stunned Tina, but mostly left her heart to sink down to what seemed to be her feet. She felt his embrace on her tighten as the tear flooded down. She was aching with him.

In effort to make him feel better, she wrapped her left arm around his chest closely as her hand gently caressed his hair. He struggled to speak so she shushed him hoping it would ease the pain.

She held the vulnerable boy tightly in her arms, as if cuddles were enough to soothe the hurt though she desperately wished it was that easy. Seeing someone like Mike cry almost brought herself to tears, but she gained some self-control. She knew crying would just concern him. Calming down gradually, he began to speak again. It made Tina feel privileged the way he trusted her so much.

"After he left, everything was so much harder. My mom was a stay at home mom so she had to get two jobs. Since her jobs were so far she had to stay at motels most of the time even til' now. The only time she's here is when we're at school to leave money then leaves right before school's over. What makes it even harder is me and Lei going to school. So I have to get her dressed, get her breakfast, then walk her to school."

"Who takes care of her when you're not here then?" she asked, deeply involved in the conversation.

"Luckily we've lived in this neighborhood for a while and we're pretty close to our neighbors so they watch over her a lot. After school things wouldn't be possible without them," finally getting a tired smirk in there.

"That's so nice of them to watch over her like that."

Mike nodded in agreement. "That's why I love this place so much. People actually care."

"I care," Tina innocently offered. "And if you ever want to just hang out with your friends or just get away, I'd happily watch over Leila for you. Least I can do for you."

All he needed was to know she was on his side and that's what she offered him.

"Tina, you just keep proving your .. Amazingness more and more." He looked her right in the eye and hugged her until the circulation from her arms stopped. She could've cared less if she couldn't use her arms. Why use them if she had his? For once that night, she could finally close her eyes in peace.

"Mike you don't give yourself enough credit. Seriously. You take care of your sister, me .. If you think I'm amazing then there really is not a single word to describe how .. how just good you are. Not even Google!" He laughed, adoring her all the same. It was tough for her to be so receptive but he more than deserved it. ""But really, you don't even know. How nice, and loving you are .. The way you're talented but never cocky. Even when you're in Glee people don't care because you're worth more than all of that shallow stuff. Even when you're on the football team, I've never seen you slushie or bully anyone."

She could tell he was really gripping onto her praise by the way he was looking at her.

"But who takes care of you?"

* * *

He wished that question could be as easy to answer as asking it. Who took care of him, he just really didn't know. What he did know was who he wanted to take care of, and honestly that was good enough for him. But how would he tell that to Tina? Would it even be worth telling her how he feels?

"I honestly don't know." This was it. He was prepared to be completely honest. And although he wasn't too prepared for her reaction, she needed to know. He knew it was only right. _She_ was the only right.

"Tina I just wanted you to know that .." he adjusted his voice to sound stronger. "That your just –"

"Did you hear that?" She interrupted hastily. "It sounds like .. Is Leila okay?"

* * *

Done & done. :D Really informative chapter you can say. I hope you guys all liked it! I really enjoyed writing this chapter so I hope all of you enjoyed reading it the exact same way. ^_^ I live to please you guys eheheh. Reviews, favorites, alerts etc etc would be much appreciated! Thank you all again. =)


	9. Hold Me and Wrap Me Up

**A/N**: dun dun dun! Chapter 7 guys! (: Ah, thank you for the inspiring reviews! You guys are the first reason why I keep writing this fan fic. The second reason being my love for Mike and Tina haha. Well here it goes! I hope all of you enjoy this chapter. :D

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Glee. fml.

_Chapter 8  
_

Although he was a little disappointed that his confession could not be fully vowed, he quickly realized what Tina had been worried about. He hurriedly jumped out of bed and ran straight out of the door, Tina only a few steps behind him.

"Lei! Leila open the door!" He hit the over-bearing divider and aggressively pulled the knob side to side. All he could hear was the sound of his little sister crying and frighteningly screaming.

"Please Lei! Open the door - " The door swiftly opened only to find a sobbing girl behind it. She quickly jumped into his open arms, tears flooding her face.

"What happened Leila?" stroking the girl's hair, rocking back and forth to soothe her.

Barely able to breathe properly she threw out all her words at once. "M-Monster. He was ch-chasing. I kept r-running!"

"It's okay Lei, it was just a bad dream. There's no monster anymore, I'm here now," speaking softly. Tina stared with deep concern in her eyes but lost in direction. He smiled and nodded signifying an 'everything's cool' sign. She relaxed.

Leila stayed lost for words as Tina and Mike slowly walked back to his room.

Mike slowly lowered Leila onto his mattress while Tina rubbed her back attempting to comfort her. She was doing an amazing job.

The three of them lay in bed, Leila in the middle. She latched onto her older brother now at rest. Her eyes were closed in peace while Mike's and Tina's weren't.

"I'm sorry Tina, she does this a lot. It was just really bad this time," sighing in stress.

She patted his shoulder learning her head in her hand. "Don't worry about it."

"You did really good though."

"What did I do? You're the one who went all super mommy," laughing in protest.

"Psh, I don't know what you're talking about," using his deepest 'manly-man' voice. His wit earned him a gleaming smile.

"I'm serious though! How are you always so .. so .. so Mike-like?" He shrugged unable to answer.

"Well I'm just glad she's okay. Poor thing, no one should ever be that afraid." Tina petted her head in affection.

Mike really loved looking at Tina like this. I mean he always liked to stare at how pretty and eye-catching she was, but right now she's just .. beautiful. It was pretty apparent to him and everyone else she was gorgeous but the way her eyes reflected with sincerity, the way she smiled so caught in the moment just made her all the more. But his favorite part though was knowing at that time, no one could see her the way he did. Not even Artie.

"What are you looking at?" She insecurely covered her face from his sight.

Before even letting him answer, she asked him another question. "Oh, and what did you want to tell me again?"

* * *

"You know, before that whole Leila thing happened?" Mike was always good at leaving questions in her head. She didn't know whether it was a good thing or bad thing, but it sure as hell was an addicting quality to possess.

"Huh? Oh, that."

"Yeah, that. So what was 'that', exactly?"

"Good question. I don't have a good enough answer to pair it up with though. Ask me again when I can think better," he teasingly remarked.

All she did was give him an "are you fucking kidding me" look that spoke for itself. Guys suck.

Satisfied with the petty reaction he received, he started to speak again to save himself a smack in the head. "I'm just kidding. I wanted to tell you .. how pretty you are."

She instinctively opened her mouth in awe.

"Well, wait that was a lie." _What the hell did this bitch just say _was the most articulate thing that could run through her half-fried mind.

Realizing how that may have been perceived he rushed to explain. "Wait, no I meant you are really pretty but then I really wanted to – You're beautiful."

She quickly felt her face grow with warmth. He really knew how to save his butt when it needed to be saved. Hopefully her obvious blushing and the ecstatic sensation of goose bumps couldn't be detected in the dark. She didn't know whether she wanted to leave his perfect comment as was or ruin the sweetness of this moment by humiliating herself. Then again, embarrassment was her expertise.

"Th-thanks you." Did she really just say thanks you? She covered her mouth, mortified. "I mean thank you. And sorry, bad habits don't die easily."

He sympathetically smiled. "Your welcomes. And it's okay."

His eyes were half open and wet lips were parted and relaxed. She could tell he was pretty close to saying goodbye for the night, so she gave him a favor by silencing herself. Before drifting into a deep trance, he groaned his last words.

"Can you promise me one thing though Tina?" He closed his eyes.

"And what would be that be?"

"Not to seem like I'm your owner or whatever, but just .. Don't hold anyone like you held me. You know, when I was crying. In, uh, a friend kind of way."

"By then, he was completely dead sleep, but she still felt obligated to answer.

"I promise."

Even after half an hour of staring at him sleeping(in a completely _not _weird way)she was the only one yet to fall asleep. It was already 4:45 and with each minute that passed the pressure to sleep pressed more and more. She was so close to surrendering herself to time when she heard a small yawn arise from a small girl. She sprawled her teeny arms and slowly looked over at Tina.

"Hi Leila, are you okay?"

Leila smiled at her appreciatively, nodding. "Good. Any bad dreams?" She nodded no.

"I'm glad."

"T-Tina? Can you come with m-me to pee?"

Tina stood outside the bathroom door waiting patiently. She understood the fear of walking alone into dark places so she easily agreed to take her. She knocked on the door lightly, cautiously watching over her.

"Everything okay there Leila?" using her softest voice.

"Y-yeah I'm okay!"

Hearing her serene voice relieved Tina. Although she just met her hours ago, she definitely reminded her of herself.

The door slowly came back as Leila walked over to Tina's side. Tina lent her hand.

"Shall we?" The little girl comfortably accepted her offer.

By now, the once so starlit horizon reformed into pink pigments. He was right; Ohio is beautiful.

"I love looking at the window at this time," confiding in the six year old forgetful of her young age. Surprisingly, she intelligently reciprocated.

"Me too. Sometimes when I'm s-sad I go to my b-brother's room and look out with him."

Tina smiled while Leila reached for her hand with ease. "You and your brother are really close aren't you?"

Leila admiringly grinned to herself. "I l-love my brother lots."

But her smile soon faded. "I just g-get mad at myself a lot .." She stared down at her feet that were covered with the soft blanket. "He always has t-to take care of me, and m-misses out on lots of th-things."

Not only did her ability to hold a conversation amaze her but her ability of being so emotionally mature. It saddened her to know that her emotional maturity was on a slight disadvantage.

"Leila, your brother loves you so much. Taking care of you and knowing your safe makes him happy. It makes me happy too," she quickly added. For some reason, she felt completely entitled to take care of her, almost like a little sister.

It was crazy how similar the siblings were. Both are humble and kind, charming yet innocent, and both of them needed to be cared for but were absolutely unaware of it.

"I know it's weird because I just met you but if you ever need anything just call me, okay? Whether it's five in the afternoon or five in the morning. I'll be there."

Leila smiled to herself. Even she realized that Tina was sleep-deprived so she casually ended the conversation as a thank you.

"Goodnight Tina .. and thank y-you."

She slowly tugged her hand out of stance but replaced it with an affectionate hug and a sweet peck on the cheek while she watched the teenager close her eyes thoughtlessly.

* * *

Walaaaaa! :D Hope you guys liked. I'm thinking of putting the next chapter up a little sooner than I normally do because I'm just oh-so excited for you guys to read the next one haha. :) then there's the usual; read, review, but most importantly enjoy!


	10. You're Not Even Human

**A/N**: Hello there stranger. ^_^ So like I promised, I'd post a new chapter up sooner than before instead of my usual 2 week update! I really loved writing this chapter so I couldn't contain my excitement haha. (: Plus I'm getting so much good feedback from all of you guys, I really appreciate it all the reviews and favorites and story alerts I've been receiving. And just a heads up, since school is starting soon, updating this story will be quite difficult so sorry in advance if I'm slow. /: Thank you all of you 3

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Glee. Because if I did, Mike and Tina would be the power couple of the school and obviously that's not happening .. -.-

_Chapter 9_

Bits of sunlight seeped through her heavily closed lids. The sensation of a warm, delicate hand was no longer felt and the once so vacant mattress had only been left with her on it. She lazily rolled from right to left in attempt to sleep for forever. Crazy how hours pass so quickly.

"Morning there!" The smooth voice surprised her, but that wasn't the only thing.

"H-Hey," Tina sat up a bit disorientated, concealing her early-morning blush. His bare chest was wet and shiny, with only a pair of jeans on. The hair on his head was messy but sultry, if a word like that could be used to describe a person like Mike. But his firm, visible 6-pack definitely stole the show. Who knew football practice did more than just murder the spirits of Mckinley High School boys? Or an even more plausible question: How can Mike _not_ think this was awkward!

"I laundried your clothes from last night so you can wear them today. I already put a towel in the bathroom if you want to take a shower and there's lots of food downstairs so help yourself after," smiling while picking out his shirt for the day. She really didn't want to see Mr. 6-Pack leave, but it was probably the best decision. Besides, she wouldn't want him to wonder why her stutter came back anyway.

"Thank you," she spoke while she forcefully got herself out of bed. As she made her way out of the room, Mike ran for her.

"Wait! Let me feel your head real quick." She stood still in agreement as he gently laid his hand upon her face.

"Good, you're a lot better now," smiling in assurance. "But you're really red. You okay?"

She giggled suspiciously. _I don't get it, he has a shirt on now .._

"Oh, uh, yeah! I always get like this in the morning. But once I take a shower it'll be okay! See you!" She nervously shuffled to the bathroom. She felt his muddled stare as she ran.

* * *

As he made the bed, a dressed-up Leila ran and jumped on the mattress, excited.

"Well good morning to you too."

"C-Can you and Tina come t-to school with me please!"

"Sorry Lei, we would if we could but we have school too. Don't worry, you'll have fun!"

She frowned, dissatisfied. "Okay .."

He smiled at her and messed up her hair. "So you like Tina, huh?"

"Mhm! She's s-so nice. And she's p-pretty too."

He smirked. "Can't argue with that."

As the two teens made their way to Mckinley, Mike saw her shiver with both coldness and distress. He knew exactly why.

"Don't worry Tina, it'll be fine. No one's going to care about what happened." Well, he lied. Gossip to the Mckinley student body was like blood to a constantly hungry vampire. It was never satisfied, therefore it never failed to continue eating. He just didn't really want her to worry even if Tina knew the truth as well.

He considerately stripped off his football jacket and threw it over her, both to relieve her shiver and to lessen the agony. By the looks of her paranoid facial expression, she needed all the support she could get.

"Hey, if you ever need anything, someone to talk to, eat lunch with, even if you need someone to abuse, just tell me. Text me or something, or find me in the lunch room."

By that time, they were infront of the vast school campus. It was time for them to go their separate ways though Tina was dreading it.

He gave her a big long bear hug, lifting her off the ground as he whispered in her ear, "Everything will be fine. I promise."

* * *

She really wanted to believe that everything would be fine, but both her and Mike knew the worse could be expected. As she stepped to the intimidating Mckinley halls, death glares were already being thrown around. At this point, a tormenting slushie to the face would be the most fortunate gift for her, but even then the only thing the jocks wanted to do were point fingers and lavish in their sneer comments.

"Okay guys, take out your notes from last night's homework." _Crap! _Homework slipped her mind after everything that had occurred yesterday. Then again, making up notes would be the best opportunity for her to keep busy during lunch. Mercedes was at a family thing someplace somewhere and Kurt was at home sick. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea.

"Tina, do you have your homework?"

"Sorry Mrs. Beyer, I guess it just slipped my mind. Do you think I can make it up at l-lunch?" she asked shyly, trying as hard as possible to stay unnoticed.

"Watch out Mrs. B, she might go on her knees and beg for mercy, isn't th-that right, r-r-wrist cutter?"

The class roared with laughter. This couldn't be happening to her.

"Class, settle down! Unless all of you want to spend your lunch time reading the difference between Meiosis and Mitosis I suggest you to quiet down."

"Who's Mostosis?" a confused classmate asked.

"Exactly." That lady was probably the only reason why her hatred for this class never reached its boiling point. Sure, her perfume reeked of old people and imaginably those innocent dogs you see in animal abuse commercials that make you want to spend every existing penny to save them, and her lipstick always managed to make her look like a homeless mime, but she was cool nonetheless.

"Sorry sweetie but I assigned it three days ahead of time. Can't give you any credit." Mrs. Beyer took her pen out and wrote what seemed to be a big, fat zero on her clipboard. That woman really needed to change that revolting perfume of hers, it's really accentuating her old age.

Thirty-five minutes into class, surprisingly all she's received were some crude whispers and chuckles from the back of the class. Greatly distracting her from the uncomfortable situation was the light vibrate coming through her right pocket. She reached out for her cell phone, curious to see who was sneakily texting her in the middle of class although she kind of already knew.

"_How u holding up? /: _"

"_Im so excited 2 get slushied atm. Sounds a lot better than dealing w/ this .."_

"_That bad? Dont worry, 20 mins til lunch. Just talk to me rest of the time to distract urself. :)" _

The bell rung time as time flew by her. Those twenty minutes were probably the best minutes she's had the whole day, and was probably the only pleasant ones she'd have for the day to come. She gathered her things slowly due to Mike's never-ending supply of text messages making her the last one to leave the room. She was smiling. As if none of the drama existed, nor did the pesky high school students, nor did Artie. But that wholesome feeling quickly faded when she heard the sound of her books slammed to the dusty ground, and it wasn't the wind that pushed her and her things to the floor.

The thought of looking up was completely out of the question and suddenly the sound of voices from a distance were out of reach. She was alone with a poisonous monster.

"Hey Loser! You need help picking those up?" The big bulky figure knelt down though she dared to look up.

"Well go get them, you whore!" He violently thrashed her papers creating an even bigger mess. Tina rushed to grab a hold of the flying notes but the boy careless grabbed her wrist first.

"Ow, that hurts! K-Karofsky let go, please!" she pleaded. Instead, he lifted her up and vigorously threw her at the jagged lockers. At this point, his heavy body was nailed to her gentle silhouette tearing her beautiful dress apart. At this point, all Tina could do was yell "stop", "no" and "please."

"I thought you were a prude at first but after hearing about all the shit you did with Abrams, I want to know what you can do for someone who has legs and a working dick."

Through all the chaos and madness, she was down-right stumped on how a rumor about her begging for forgiveness transformed into something as ridiculous as her being easy. But hearing the top part of her dress rip with ease made her cry and plead even harder, and the only thought that came to mind was "I'm about to get raped at school during lunch, and still, no one will fail to remind me about all these rumors."

"Football jacket?" He threw it on the floor. "Fucking a cripple _and _a jock? You really are a fucking slut!" She really didn't know what to do. Explaining would just waste her breath. After a while of just desperately telling him to stop, all her hope was drained. She even thought about just giving up and waiting for the lunch bell to ring or let him have his way. The faster this thing went, the better.

* * *

Yes, yes YES I know, this is a really sad chapter. ): And really intense. And probably a little random for some of you but I promise it all ties in after. Just to make things clear, at the moment she hasn't been raped yet, he's in the process of tearing her clothes off. I re-read it and it really seems like he's already done it but he hasn't. OH, and **I changed the rating to M because of, well yeah.**I felt like I should, because I don't want to get in trouble for having the wrong rating. Feedback would be awesome, thanks guys! :D


	11. Trying to Find My Way Into You

**A/N**: Hey all of you Tike shippers! :D I've told some of you this but I'm going to be updating this story more frequently than before. How does every Friday sounds? (: Sorry I couldn't post this yesterday! Very very long day. But here it is! Last chapter was pretty trippy huh? I apologize for any confusion any of you might've experienced. Nonetheless, thank you for the many positive reviews I received! I literally had a ^_^ face reading them. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Glee.

_Chapter 10_

All she wanted to do was fall to the floor from the exhaustion of kicking and crying, but Karofsky's grip on her was so tight and secure, she could barely breathe properly.

He was almost done ripping the last layer of her flimsy dress. All she could think about was how after this, she'd be one of the million victims of rape. The emptiness she'd feel after, how her life would never be the same. How she'd never get to have a special first time, and that in a matter of minutes, her first would be Karofsky. Big, fat, ugly Karofsky.

Just when all her faith on humanity was about to succumb, the sound of footsteps raised her hope. _Please, God, send me an angel to save me from this shithole _was what her prayer intended. But when her hope had easily risen, it just as easily fallen when those nearing footsteps could no longer be heard and silence became her only friend.

Everything was a blur after that. She felt his sweaty hand rub against her stomach as he roughly smothered her neck. Her body ran colder from the lack of clothing while it was still being torn apart on the spot.

But suddenly his grimy touch was no longer felt, and a great sense of freedom toppled over her. She could breathe.

Though her excessive tears made her vision hazy and unclear, her hearing was perfectly intact. It was the sound of Karofsky fighting with another guy but she couldn't familiarize the other's voice.

"What the fuck Chang? Get the fuck off!"

Mike.

"Did you fuck off when she begged you to? You don't get to touch her like that you worthless piece of shit!"

Now, more and more footsteps were crowding around her as her sight was being slowly renewed. She made out the image of what looked like Mr. Schuster and another male teacher holding the two teenagers from their fight.

"Mike stop! It's done!" Mr. Schu demanded.

"Mr. Schu he doesn't deserve to not be fucked with!" he yelled angrily.

"Well it seems like your whore of a girlfriend thought otherwise Bitch!" Her heart stopped dead in place. From all the pain he'd caused her, having that ignorant sentence from hurting her so much was the last thing she'd imagined it would do, but it did. It hurt a lot.

Her vision fully rejuvenated right as Mike brutally punched the enormous teenager right in his blubbery face. An immense amount of blood was flowing from his nose and the area around his left eye was badly bruised. Somehow, Mike escaped from Mr. Schu's grip which allowed the powerful hit, though Mr. Schu regained control by entangling his arms behind his back. In the midst, Tina continued to cry furiously without any intention of stopping.

"Tanaka, take Dave to the office," he ordered promptly. "I'll be bringing Mr. Chang too."

She couldn't believe her ears. Why was Mike being put into the office too? _All he did was try to protect me .._

To her surprise, it seemed as if Mike accepted the consequence rather quickly, almost like he thought he was wrong too.

"Hey Em, can you take care of Tina?"

Mr. Schu, Coach Tanaka, Mike and Karofsky walked, disappearing through the halls. She felt a gentle hand lay on her arm that stunned her and already brought back the traumatizing feelings she had not too long ago, but the touch itself was warming and comforting.

"Hey Tina, do you mind if we head to my office? I just want to talk about some of the things that happened."

She nodded as Ms. Pillsbury helped her stand steadily on her feet. It made her feel better to be asked if she wanted to do something. At first, she didn't even bother to answer, having this awful mentality no one would listen to her. And as she patiently walked Tina toward her room, a group of girls Tina had never spoken to loudly whispered, "Isn't that the girl who gave that guy in a wheelchair a blow job?"

* * *

The benches were aged and seemed like they were an ounce away from collapsing into wooden particles. The room smelled like the sweat from anxious, troubled teenagers and almost looked like those empty, cushiony rooms where insane people in stray jackets go. Well, not really. He just really didn't want to be there.

All he could think about was Tina. Even if he gave Karofsky what he deserved, he couldn't help but wonder where he'd be if he didn't just wait to beat the crap out of him: The principal's office or by her side?

"Mike Chang?"

"Oh, uh yeah, that's me," he politely answered as he stood up.

The lady adjusted her thin-framed glasses, scanning him with a peculiar look on her face.

"I've never seen you here. You seem like a nice boy. I wonder how you ended up in a place like this .. Do I wanna ask?" He slowly shook his head.

"Thought so. Well Principal Figgins would like to see you now. "She insisted to open the door for Mike.

When he stepped into the room, Figgins let out a startled expression.

"Mr. Chang? Did you need something?"

"I kind of was sent here."

He let out a breath, relieved. "Ah, I see. You need another community service sheet. Let me just go through this pile of junk. Look at you, helping out the community! More kids should be like - "

"I beat someone up." It really took all his courage just to quietly admit it but the guilt was tearing him up inside.

Now, Principal Figgins straight up looked like he was going to shoot him with the rocket launcher he most fondly used to annihilate zombies in Resident Evil.

"What the -"

"Can I come in?" The door loudly creaked. Mr. Schuster was peeking behind it.

"What do you want Will?" he snapped.

"It's regarding Mike's situation."

He gripped onto that seat with his dear life. He was even sweatier than he got from football practice and his butt was aching from all the pressure he had on the firm chair. Having Mr. Schu there was either a really good thing or a horrible, terrible thing.

"So tell me Mr. Schu, what exactly happened?" _Oh please Mr. Schu, help me out a little. _

"Well Principal Figgins, basically .. Mike saved a helpless girl from being a victim of rape." Both Mike and Figgins were in shear shock. _Thank you_. "But he almost killed him in the making."

Well, he couldn't deny it. But who wouldn't want to kill someone like Karofsky if he hurt a girl like Tina?

"Who was the culprit and who was the victim?"

"Dave Karofsky. Mike found him pushing against Tina Cohen-Chang on the lockers and sucker-punched him before the worst," briefly explaining with a mild frown.

Figgins looked at his disorganized desk in thought.

"Well then. I guess you're off the hook Mr. Chang. But under one condition," he started.

"Garbage pick-up during lunch starting the whole of next week." He looked at Mr. Schuster and added, "The custodians refused to work after I reduced their pay."

"Will do Principal Figgins," shaking his hand thankfully. "And sorry, but I actually do need another community service sheet." 

As Mike and Mr. Schuster walked together down the barren halls, they stood still taking in everything that had come their way. "She went home. Her parents picked her up half an hour ago and that monster of a person is at the police station."

He nodded, regret captivating every inch of his body. "I should've been there sooner. I should've known something was wrong when I couldn't find her. I couldn't prevented this whole thing .."

Mr. Schu patted his shoulder staring at him with empathetic eyes. "Mike, it's not your fault. The only person who's to blame is the person who is now going to pay for his actions with the police. You helped her so much from stopping what could've happened. Mike, she really needs someone right now."

Without warning, the tears came flooding. He felt so helpless. He really couldn't help but blame himself for what happened to Tina even though Mr. Schu made it clear who was at fault. The noble teacher gave him a hug just like the one he gave Finn when he sulked about Quinn's pregnancy.

"Stay strong for her because she needs you." He let go of him and quickly took out a pen and paper to write on. "What's your 5th and 6th period?"

He slowly breathed in and out, calming his worn-out heart. "Art then Spanish with you."

"I thought you were getting your teeth cleaned?" He handed him the small piece of paper he wrote on. It read 'Early dismissal pass: Mike Chang. Reason for leave: Dentist appointment. Mr Schu'.

"Have fun at the dentist."

He smiled back in gratitude. "Thanks Mr. Schu, you're the best." He walked through the evident lockers, images hitting every corny of his conscious.

Within a matter of minutes, Mike was somehow outside of Tina's house, fresh sunflowers and a goldfish stuffed animal at hand. He recalled Tina raving about her former pet fish who coincidentally was named Leila, and this one time they walked pass this tiny flower market, she paid attention to the sunflowers, closing her eyes completely taken aback while smelling their fragrance. Hopefully this cliché of a gift would have the same effect.

He slowly made his way to the front door gesturing what he'd do and how he'd say it. It almost felt like he was going to ask her on a date or something, but he wasn't. This was a lot more serious than that.

As he maneuvered to knock on the wooden door, it quickly opened. "Oh hi, I'm Mike, Tina's friend."

The middle-aged Asian woman made a melancholy face while gesturing Mike to move back. "Mike, was it?" He nodded politely. "I know you're here to check up on Tina, but she's at a very fragile state right now. After what happened she's definitely not herself and as a teenager as yourself, I don't think you'll be able to handle -"

"I know, Mrs. Chang, Cohen-Chang .. and I'm sorry for rudely interrupting but I need to see Tina. She's helped me so much. I kind of need to return the favor and I promise I won't do anything stupid." She listened thoughtfully. "I'm .. different."

Mrs. Cohen-Chang had a regretful face, but seemed convinced. "She's upstairs in her room. Make a right from the hallway and it's the very last room."

He smiled with gratefulness as he did a little curtsey. He kind of wished he could take it back though; it was a little embarrassing. But there were more important things that had to be thought about.

Now there he was, right outside another door but just as nerve-racking. Going through each door felt like such a corny metaphor for life: You get closer and closer to your destination but trying to get to the next door, nonetheless opening it was a task of its own. Why he paid attention in English, he didn't know.

"Tina?" He reluctantly knocked on the slightly opened door. He heard a silent breath so he slowly swung the door to allow himself in.

The first sight he saw was her learned against the dashboard of her bed looking out her window. She changed from her pretty purple dress that was probably wrecked from Karofsky's rough hands. Instead, she was compiled in oversized sweaters and a black, stringy scarf wrapped around her neck. It was as if that cold of hers caught up although that wasn't it. He wanted to kill that sad excuse of a person but at that time all he needed to do was be there for her.

She finally noticed him after a good minute of standing awkwardly and was caught off guard.

"Um, hi." She forged a smile.

"Please, don't .." Mike heartbrokenly pleaded. "You don't owe me anything."

She looked at the gifts in his hand then worriedly looked aimlessly into mid-air.

"Oh, and these are for you." He held out the flowers and stuffed animal. She remained in the same trance she'd been in: staring at nothing. A smile 10,000 miles away.

"Look if you want me to go it's fine." She sharply looked at his direction, misery bleeding from her eyes. That's all it took.

He threw the flowers and toy to the ground unconcerned of the condition the gifts were under and quickly sat on the bed by her side. He saw each tear fall one by one with a slight frown glued to her face. These tears were so different than the ones he'd previously seen at the auditorium. When she cried at the auditorium, it was a non-stop sob where she let everything inside of her out. This time, her tears were moving so slowly you could count each one that fell. It was like expressing the pain she had to undergo hurt too much to even cry about.

He squeezed her hand. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there earlier Tina. I would never let him hurt you like that .." She rested her head on his chest, whimpering in pain unable to reciprocate.

His arms wrapped around her body tightly. "I'll stay by your side and we're gonna get through this together okay? You're never gonna be alone, okay? I won't hurt you and like I said before .. I'll never leave you."

It was almost 6:30 and Tina had fallen asleep in Mike's arms for about three hours. He didn't mind. The whole time he'd just been staring at her (not in a creepy way) closing his eyes one minute then opening them then next. His shoes and jacket had been off since he already figured he would maintain this position the moment she drifted asleep.

He insightfully scanned her bedroom a little amused from his findings. The walls were painted a vibrant yellow that made his eyes a little sore. There was this big mahogany book shelf that contained burnt CDs, aged books and picture albums. Plastic flowers in small, tan pots were laid out throughout her room. On one corner, there were pictures of the Glee club and people who seemed to be her family members.

He noticed himself on one of the pictures on the wall. It was from that one time they stopped by their infamous fro yo spot after a long day of rehearsal. They just started to get silly and took a whole bunch of random pictures together. It was one of the few times he felt like he could just let go, feel free and not have to worry about what others think. It hurt him to know he could never have Tina feel the same way. At least not now. When something like that happens to you, it's hard to let go. It's hard to forget.

Suddenly he felt a faint movement from the girl enveloped in his arms. She opened her eyes sluggishly and looked straight at him a bit confused. It was cute how lost she was, kind of like a puppy.

"What time is it?" she asked.

He smiled. "Just hit 6:30."

"You stayed here the whole time?"

"Uh, yeah. I did." Her surprised expression forced a subtle blush. That was until she clung onto him tighter like she never wanted to him to leave. She didn't say a word but just allowed his embrace. "Do you want anything? A drink or something? I can buy you something, let me just get my coat -" Tina held onto his arm and tugged him gently as he shifted to put his sneakers and sweater on.

"Sorry," he huffed. "I get ahead of myself."

"It's okay. Just lay down with me some more," she begged. "Do you know if anyone's home?"

"Well when I came in your mom was leaving the house. It didn't sound like anyone else was here though."

"She had work. My dad's probably at work too. They don't get back until 8 .." she said, saddened by the realization she'd have to be alone.

Mike looked at her. "Well I guess we'll have to kill an hour and a half!"

A slight smile finally appeared. "Really?" He nodded. "But how about Leila? Don't you have to get her around this time?"

"I got it all covered, I promise."

She hugs him again as they positioned themselves like before. "Thank you."

It was the only time she'd smiled today and for Tina, that was an extremely rare thing. So it completely slipped his mind that the Thompsons told him they could only take care of Leila until 6:45 due to a family party. He figured he'd just call and ask them to bring her to the day-care center. Being a frequent volunteer there, Carrie hopefully wouldn't mind taking care of Leila for a while. He never really did ask for much.

* * *

:) Long update, no? Hope you guys liked this one! I'm introducing many OCs but they aren't going to have a big role so yeah, no worries for those of you non-OC fans. OH, and sorry that I didn't really equally write Tina's POV as much as Mike's. I just thought Mike's POV was more crucial. Reviews are love, as well as story alerts and faves or just a view! If you find any mistakes, feel free to send me a message and I'll change it asap. Thanks guys, you mean lots to me! ;D


	12. I'm Falling Inlove but I'm Falling Apart

**A/N**: Hey there fanfic readers! New chapter up. I'm so sorry I've been saying that I'll post on Fridays but for some reason I have bad, hectic days so yeah. School's been eating me alive. -_- Well anyway, Glee is right around the corner and I've been hearing spoilers about season two & I'm so hyped about it! Msg me if you want to know who and what it regards to. I don't want to say it anymore because I don't want to give it away if you don't wanna know LOL so yeah. Oh and sorry if this is a short update. ): For that, i'll try my hardest to update on Thursday or something. Here you go!

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Glee.

_Chapter 11_

"I'm just gonna go to the bathroom real quick." Leaping from the comfortable bed he hastily walked out the room. When he was no longer in sight, he snatched his cell phone from his jean pocket.

"Hello?" the older man answered.

"Hi Mr. Thompson!"

"Oh, hi Mike. Are you going to be picking up Leila soon? We're about to leave in 10 minutes."

"Um Mr. Thompson, you see my friend .. She's .. Something came up .. I'm at her house and her parents aren't coming back until 8 and –"

Mr. Thompson laughed erratically. "It's ok Mike. I was a teenager once too. You deserve a break." Blood rushed through his cheeks immensely, realizing how wrongly that could be perceived.

"Wait, that's not what I meant Mr. Thompson," he chuckled a bit flustered.

"No worries, I won't ask any questions." _What the fuck Mike. _"So did you want us to drop her off at daycare?"

"Yes, please. Thank you so much Mr. Thompson. Next time I mow your lawn there won't be a need to pay me!"

"No problem Kiddo. And what's with this 'Mr. Thompson' crap? I've known you since you were in middle school! I'm only 38, no need to make me feel like an 83-year-old, Buddy!"

"Sorry Mr. T. See you tomorrow then!"

He hung up the cell phone a little relieved and forgetful of the humiliation he'd brought on himself. Next step would be to call Carrie from day care. Hopefully his nonexistent charm would easily reel her in.

"Lima Day Care Center! This is Carrie speaking; how may I help you?" Her high-pitched, perky voice almost brought him to hold up the phone half an inch away from his ear.

"Hey Care, It's Mike!"

"Oh hey Mike, everythin' ok?"

"I was just calling to tell you that the Thompsons are going to drop Leila off."

She sighed. "Mike we close at seven. It's Friday today, you should've remembered that!"

_Shit. _Friday. Six o'clock. Movies. Brittany. _Shit._ At this point, all he could do was beg and plead.

"Please Care, I'm begging you. I'll even work as Sprinkles the Sea Horse and wear the costume if I have to!"

"Whoa there," she spoke in a serious tone. ".. You'd really wear the costume?" she asked, laughing hysterically. He grew warm from embarrassment but he had to pull out all the stops.

"Yes ma'am."

"Okay fine fine, don't worry about it. My 'hot date' tonight cancelled on me last minute anyway so Lei can serve as my even hotter date tonight," sighing in disappointment.

"Oh my God you're a life saver. I'll pay you an extra -"

"No, no, no! Don't even say it. You always help with the kids without pay and you're a big help so yeah, completely covered."

Mike inhaled a big breath of relief. "I can't believe I'm saying this but if you ever need a 'hot date' I can always .."

"Sorry Mr. I'm-Still-A-Sophomore-In-High-School, I'm pretty sure that's illegal in like, most states. You know, dating someone that young."

"My bad Ms. I'm-Still-A-Freshmen-In-College, I forgot good-looking guys with even better looking personalities isn't a part of your criteria," he joked loosely.

"Yeah suck my dick Chang." For a quick second he mistakenly thought Santana was on the other line.

"I can't believe you're allowed to work with children."

She chuckled. "Well I gotta go, see you later Changster." Right when he was about to press that little red button, she murmured to catch his attention. "Oh, and who is she?"

_Well that's not awkward at all. _He was lost for words. "This is the first time you'd actually asked for a favor and from the sound of the desperation in your voice, sounds like someone's a little .. you know .."

"Hm?" he apprehensively squeaked, curious to see what she was going to say.

"_Whipped_. Whooped. Sprung. Or as my grandma used to say, 'love knockin' you out on the ol' geezer!' .."

"Bye Carrie." Was he really that obvious?

* * *

Fifteen minutes had passed and Mike still hadn't returned. But frankly, she really did not have the slightest exertion to care, so she took the time to return to her sleeping condition and shut her eyes. She was exhausted. Her throat was scratchy and discreet from screaming and it was a difficult task to reposition her arms and legs due to Karofsky's abrasive hold. Even if she didn't get raped, she felt all the side effects as if she had.

Mike strolled back in the room apathetically. She wondered what took him so long but didn't bother to ask; she just continued to rest. As if nothing had happened, he joined her. The absence of their voices created a silence between them that had only allowed her to feel even more restless.

"Are you coming to school on Monday?" he solicitously asked.

"Yeah." She didn't want to seem so jaded by only answering what's been asked, but what else could she say?

"Oh okay. Oh, Mr. Schu said it'd be fine if you wanted to perform the routine another day. You know, until you feel better."

"I don't care." She could tell Mike felt a little uncomfortable with her sudden change of attitude. Therefore, he didn't say anything.

Tina closed her eyes harsher, digging her face onto his chest. "I'm sorry Mike. I'm acting like such a .. such a bitch to you when all you've been doing is helping. Who knows what could've happened .. if you .. didn't come .." From then on her words were so dysfunctional and muffled by the tears soon to come. She couldn't hold it in.

He placed his head over hers and blithely kissed her scalp. "Don't say sorry. I should be the one apologizing you know." She looked up from under him attentively. "I should've gotten there sooner. I should've went to your class help you carry your books. But that's not going to happen again." She bit her lip. "You have to believe me when I say everything will be okay."

It was difficult having to nod her head trustingly, but it was Mike, and if he said everything would be okay, then that's just what she had to believe.

After a while of staining Mike's shirt, she fell asleep in his arms once yet again. But this time when she woke up she'd be wrapped in her own arms with a gold fish stuffed animal. There was a note taped on its forehead. It read _LOOK YOUR VIDEOS ON YOUR CELL PHONE_. Puzzled, she obeyed.

"Hey Tina! Good morning .. or good night. Whatever .." He spoke timidly but blissfully. "You'll probably be wondering what time it is and it's probably 8:40' ish to 8:55' ish. You kind of sleep in three hour intervals so yeah. But if it just so happens to be like 6 in the morning, free frozen yogurt for breakfast tomorrow! Better check your clock now!"

The chunky metallic device glowed brightly as she glanced over at it. 8:51 PM.

"Assuming that I'm right, I'm still coming for you tomorrow anyway and you aren't stopping me so ha!" She chuckled.

"Just text me what flavor you want or better yet, call me! Only if you're up for it."

Honestly she was too drained out for either choice.

"And I'm pretty sure you're too tired to do any of those so we can trade if you don't like yours." She gave out a slight smile but began to gas out again.

"Well your probably getting ready to crash again so I'll call you in the morning k? Sleep tight Tina Cohen-Chang! I'll be there when you wake up."

_Wow. That boy really knew how to create one heck of a wakeup call. _His video distracted her so much that she was completely oblivious of her mother's presence.

"Hi honey, how was your nap?" she questioned kindly. The sunflowers Mike gave were in her hand as she patiently arranged them in a tall clear vase. "These sunflowers are beautiful. By the way, who was that boy? He was so sweet and polite .."

"My friend Mike. He's my partner in Glee for our assignment. And yeah, he is sweet," she responded. "Do you know when he left?"

"About the same time I got home. He said he had to pick up his little sister from daycare."

"Oh, okay." Tina looked out the window as if to find him there.

"Did you eat yet?" She shook her head. "What did you want me to cook? I can make Italian, Chinese, anything you want -"

"I don't have much of an appetite." Her mother gave her a sympathetic look and sighed. She felt horrible for being so cold to her mom but was too tired to smile or put on an act like she usually does.

"Well I guess I should start cleaning up. Are you going to go back to sleep?" She nodded.

"I'll close the door on my way out then. But honey, if you need anything at any time just call me okay? And if you want to talk about it .." she trailed off unable to finish her sentence.

"Thanks Mom." Mrs. Cohen-Chang smiled at her as she deliberately closed her bedroom door. That night, Tina went to her parent's room and fell asleep by her mommy's side.

* * *

And there you go. I'm sorry if this chapter seemed really slow and not very important, but I wanted to show how much Mike sacrifices for Tina and showed a little bit of Tina's life at home. I've been receiving lots of questions asking how long this story will go on for, and there'll be at least 5 more chapters! So that should be a good thing for a lot of you. (: Read and review guys, thank you so much!


	13. I Don't Know What He's After

**A/N**: Hi there. ^_^ So before I start flailing from all the spoilers I've seen for season 2, thank you to all of you who have been so supportive of this story! It really means so much to me. Definite confidence boost as lame as that may be. And like I promised, I'd update this story a day or 2 then I usually do because of my late updates so TADAAAAAA! Anywhoo, about season 2 spoilers .. Oh man, just ask me about it and I'll show you this really really cute video/pictures about .. something that'll happen. LOL. Hope you like! (;

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Glee.

_Chapter 12_

Mango, taro, chocolate, or strawberry? But wait, there was also vanilla, lychee, green apple and original. Wait .. _There's another row of flavors!_ He wouldn't have thought picking out frozen yogurt for Tina would be this difficult but he knew she was so emotionally sensitive he couldn't afford to mess up. It was a good thing he chose to leave the house half an hour earlier. If he hadn't, he'd still probably be here until lunch time.

He knew it would just be easier to text her and ask what she wanted, but he didn't want to wake her if she was asleep and he wanted to impress her. One week's worth of friendship isn't exactly enough time to know every little detail about someone. In the end, he resolved his problem by getting a little bit of every flavor in the overwhelming store and covering it with a thick layer of the mini mochis and assorted lychee jelly. The few times they've been there, he observantly noticed she'd always drown her fro-yo with those little guys, so it was a start.

_Diiiiiiiing_. His skill of ringing the doorbell with pancakes and frozen yogurt situating in his hands truly astounded him.

The doors swung open to find Mrs. Cohen-Chang standing right in front of him, vividly reminding him of the day before. "Oh, good morning! Mike, right?"

"Good morning Mrs. Cohen-Chang -"

"Please; Nicole," she blithely retorted. Her sudden kindness freaked him out a bit to say the least. It was definitely an upgrade from her 'greeting' the other day, but he understands she's just trying to protect Tina. Kind of like his mom. "Tina should be awake by now. Go ahead and make yourself at home."

He stepped in subsequently making his way to the staircase when Mrs. Chang called out for him hesitantly. "Thank you, Mike .. For helping Tina through this."

Turning on his heel, he offered her a shy smirk, lowering his stare in thought. "You don't have to worry .. I'll take care of her no matter what."

With a slight hint of dejection, she smiled back meekly. She trusted him to care for her daughter, even if she felt like she couldn't do a good job of it herself.

* * *

She lay still staring at the ceiling. The sun showed off all its glimmering light and glory. Her mouth had that 'morning after' taste as well as the odor. She'd been awake for an hour trying her best to fall back asleep, but after sleeping off 15 hours of her life she was convinced it'd be impossible. Usually, she'd be up and ready for a pretty, Saturday morning but now she was just anxiously counting the minutes until school started.

Someone knocked on her door in the midst of her anticipation. "Come in." Her throat still ached and it sounded as if she swapped voices with Darthvader.

"Good morning sunshine!" Mike announced enthusiastically. She could not match up with his severe energy level.

"Did you see the video?"

Tina looked over at him lazily. "Yeah. Thanks." Her heavy head rested to the natural curve of her arm. "And it was 8:51 when I watched it."

He smiled and presented her two filled plastic bags. "A little too late for _that _bet."

She weakly smirked appreciatively. "Thanks, but I'm not too hungry."

His mouth formed into a loose O-shape. "Not even for .." he took out a Tupperware container with a scratchy black lid on top. "Scrambled eggs with maple bacons?"

Next, he pulled out a round container. "Or hot, buttery pancakes made from the magical hands of a fairy princess named Leila?"

Unaffected, she stared at him somewhat unimpressed.

Sighing unhappily, he squinted his dark eyes as something clicked in his head. "Well, you leave me no choice." He opened the containers deliberately taunting her senses as the delicious smell of bacon and sweet aroma of the pancakes filled the room. He placed them next to the table right next to her. Now he was .. _Unbuttoning his shirt? _

Shocked, she asked, "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to strip down from head to toe and run around your house until you eat," he replied nonchalantly. _Was he serious?_

"Both my parents are home .. You wouldn't dare .."

"I guess Daddy Cohen-Chang will receive one hell of a greeting then." The orange-brown plaid shirt he once had on was now thrown to the side. Tina frantically hopped out of bed and grabbed his shirt, offering it back to him.

"Oh, thanks!" He took the shirt only to throw it in the overflowing hamper. "It was getting a little wrinkly anyway."

At this point, Mike was shirtless and in the process of unbuckling his belt. All Tina did was agitatedly pace back and forth, blood rushing through her pale cheeks.

"You're gonna get shanked by a pair of chopsticks!" she yelled out with a newly-formed grin on her face.

"Your gonna die from starvation while the bacon gets cold!" he jokingly retaliated. The pants were down.

She really didn't know why she was being this stubborn. Her tummy was grumbling from hunger anyway and the food looked delicious, but a part of her wanted to stay in a slump; another part of her enjoyed playing with Mike like this.

Quickly, she retrieved the shirt from her laundry basket giggling uncontrollably. She's not sure how this happened, but now both her and Mike were wrestling each other on the floor laughing their butts off.

"The boxers are coming off!" he struggled to shout out.

"Put your shirt back on!" The button-up was in her right hand while she unrealistically made an attempt to dress him back up. What in her right-mind told her she could tackle a football player and get away with it?

Ready to surrender she got off him. "Okay, fine!" She marched over to the table of food and violently took a bite off a strip of bacon. _Food_. Good, warm food. Her once aggressive chomping transitioned into a subtle food pig-out.

Buttoning his shirt and panting heavily, he laughed. "I threatened to run butt-naked in your house just for you to eventually eat good food. We are so weird."

Only a mere 10 minutes passed and nearly all the food had been demolished. Tina looked at the empty plastic containers shamefully. "Sorry .."

He smiled brightly, happy to see his friend better. "Don't worry about it. I ate before I got here."

The second bag was on the floor lying beside her side table. "And now for the main course!" He snatched the bag from the ground and scavenged through it with his hand. "Frozen yogurt, woo!" he exaggerated. She smiled genuinely.

"What flavor did you get me?" she asked, distracted by the neon yellow cup at his hold.

"Let's see: Vanilla, mango, taro, chocolate, strawberry, original, lychee, green apple, cheesecake, banana, peach, and coconut."

Surprised and a bit muddled, she stared. "Why?" was all she blurted out.

"Don't kill me for this but I .." he trailed off. Mike gaped at her, wincing ever so slightly. "I don't know what your favorite flavors are!" he faintly yelled. "But I did remember your strange love for mini-mochi and lychee jelly so if you don't like it you can erase the taste by eating either of those."

Squinting her eyes, she stared and gave him a playful death glare. "Better take notes."

* * *

Tongue lightly brushing her sugary bottom lip, she smiled. "That was really good."

Mike drew a smiley face on a piece of scratch paper next to the word 'mango.' He couldn't help but smile at how serious Tina was taking this. She was so concentrated and observant to each little bite she'd take as if she was one of those judges from Iron Chef(which he secretly loved watching).

"Ehh. A little too sour for my gentle palette." Clicking the red pen he drew a frowny next to 'green apple.' It made him happy to see her improving from yesterday. He really didn't know how much crying he could take in a day.

"All done!" placing the empty paper cup in the plastic bag.

"So I got mango, vanilla, peace, lychee and cheesecake down for the smileys."

She leaned her head against the dashboard mischievously grinning. "Okay, I have a confession too .."

His eyebrow furrowed in curiosity. "And what would that be?"

Her eyes averted to the left. "I don't know what your favorite flavors are either."

He gave a fake, shocked expression. "Then I guess it's your turn to take notes."

The two laughed, giggled, snickered and served as each other's company for the next following hours. It made Mike happy to see Tina back in shape as if nothing happened, though he so desperately wished none of it ever _did _happen.

"Okay my turn, my turn," she said excitedly. They were playing that game where you try to slap your opponent's hands while yours are below theirs. It was the hardest thing to explain but the easiest game to play. Well, for Tina that is. She was kicking his ass.

"I got you so bad!" He jumped off the bed giddily.

"Whatever! That was like one out of 75 times."

While the remembrance of yesterday was thought to be far away it was too fast to act as if it never happened. In the midst of their laughter, Tina's smile went from a frown to empty eyes then into unexpected tears. She pulled her legs to her chest, digging her face into her crossed arms.

"I don't get why I'm this emotional. He didn't even .. even go all the w-way and I'm being such a drama queen."

Her words shocked him. "It's understandable that you're feeling like this Tina. But it's not your fault and you're not a drama queen. He hurt you.. That's reason enough."

He grabbed her unoccupied hand that was hanging and sincerely looked into her eyes. She inhaled slowly and shakily, trying to regain her absent breath. "I really appreciate you doing -" she stopped and sniffed. "I really appreciate you. Everything you do for m-me. And every little thing you say to me."

He looked back at her, incapable of saying anything. If only he could serve as her protective rock all the time, keeping her safe whenever, wherever. She was so ridiculously unhealthy for him but he didn't care. As long as they could be like this, it'd be good enough.

* * *

Yay. :D I hope you guys liked this chapter! You could say it was on a lighter note unlike the last 3 chapters. Thank you again to all of you who've been just oh-so supporting. You guys are amazing. (: Read and review, but most importantly enjoy!


	14. I Better Find Your Heart

**A/N**: Aaaaaaaah, thank you to all the amazing and just **nice **feedback I've been getting on this! :D I smile every time I read a review. You guys are awesome. D; Just to inform you I'm finished writing the story(yes I know, I'm so sad about it) so now all I have to do is update which means **I'll be updating twice a week**! If you haven't seen my profile, I've actually been working on _another _multi-chapter fanfic that's revolved around Tike which I'll be publishing after this story is done so I wanna get that story out before season 2 begins. I'm excited about it. If you have any suggestions or anything, feel free to tell! :D And one last thing(sorry, talking a lot), I'm sorry if this chapter is a really weird and awkward transition but this chapter takes place 5 months after. So here you go! Hope you enjoy my loves.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Glee.

_Chapter 13_

Tina fidgeted in her chair trying to amuse herself with her brittle nails. Usually on Saturday afternoons like this, she'd be spending time with Mike adventuring the world she'd barely explored or it would be the two of them relaxing at his or her house, incessantly talking about nothing either of them could put their finger on. Ever since the whole Karofsky incident happened, they were inseparable. Thankfully time had healed the scars she'd suffered along with the help of Mike. Honestly, she really doubts she would've mended so quickly if he hadn't been there helping her every step of the way. For every nightmare she'd have at three in the morning, he'd pick up the phone in a heartbeat or would be sleeping on the uncomfortable floor right next to her. For every abrupt mood change she'd have, transitioning from an honest smile to fearful tears, he would lend his shoulder to cry on, sacrificing clean clothes in trade for the stains of her mascara and eyeliner. He was the kind of person she was convinced she never needed, even if she subconsciously always looked for.

Though she enjoyed having Mike as one of her best friends, five months of devoted friendship was not how she imagined them to be. Along the lines of late-night phone calls, spending every free afternoon taking Leila out and tiresome 'sleepless-Sundays' she'd only fallen for him more. Still, she was so incapable of telling him the truth. It was hard for her to fathom how Mike could possibly love someone like her; an outsider, a freak, an outcast - A nobody.

Interrupting her state of monotony was a sudden vibration from her cell phone. It was a text message from Mike.

"_Hey you. (: Well you know how its my birthday today right?"_

Tina blinked her eyes slowly in disbelief.

"_Other asian say whaaat? I thought it was in 2 weeks!"_

"_..you forgot my bday? D: dammit Tina!"_

Utter guilt filled her conscious. Just as she was texting her notorious three page apology he texted again.

"_SIIIIIKE! I bet you were about to text me your essay of an apology huh? Hahahaha." _He knew her too well. "_My bday IS in 2 weeks tho, but the guys figured .. er, the girls figured since we have finals itd be too crazy to have my 'big bday bash.' So im having it tonight._"

"_HaHA, very funny :P .. Uww, sounds fun. Did you want me to take care of Lei .. ?_"

"_Ya can you? NO. I want you to be there. Srsly, who asks that? But It starts at 7:30 til whenever all of them pass out haha."_

She felt a little hesitant texting back. Alcohol, douche bags, football players, drunk football players acting like douche bags .. Not really her thing. "_Being slushied with vodka instead of the regular slushie? ill have to think about this .._"

"_Oooh cmon! im only inviting the descent jocks and besides, everyone from glees coming!_"

This offer was subtly getting more appealing. "_fine fine, ill go!_"

He replied faster than usual. "_yay. :D pucks house btw. Need a ride?_"

"_its cool, my dad can drive me. ttyl then!_"

It was almost a quarter to 8 and all Tina had done to her wardrobe was toss it around in different regions of her room. The only time she'd had anything cute and girly to wear was when Kurt got her that pretty, purple dress that's probably now in a dumpster thanks to Karofsky.

She felt a dim vibration coming from her cell phone. Assuming it was Mike calling, she answered, "Hey sorry, I'll be there soon Mike -"

"Mike? I know you're in love with him Tina but this is Mercedes girl!" she replied in her inevitable divalicious tone.

"Sorry! As you can see I'm running a little late. I have nothing to wear," she said impatiently as she threw another disappointing blouse to the side.

Mercedes gasped elatedly. "You're still at home right?"

Fearing the sound of her friend's mysterious excitement, she replied, "Yeah, I am. Why? What're you thinking?"

She could sense her mounting smile through the phone. "Don't move. I'll be there in a bit."

"I have a bad feeling about this Mercedes – Wait, I'm not in love with - !"

From there she hung up. She could already sense the makeover that was coming her way and she stood by what she said;_ I have a bad feeling about this_.

* * *

The spacious house was filled with at least 80 people all from different backgrounds: The chess club, the lacrosse team, the Gay-Straight Alliance, the badminton team, the football team, Glee club, the cheerios, the track team, Earth club, that cool guy who sits next to him in chemistry, his friends from dance class and who would've guessed, the Asian-American club. Spending time with Tina had really broadened his mind to a variety of people. Before, all he was exposed to were football players and cheerleaders but now, you can find him with people from the Earth club to the badminton team.

After collecting gifts and greeting guests, he double-checked his cell phone for any missed calls from Tina, but none were found. _It's almost 8:30, _he thought. _Where is that girl?_

He flipped out the mini-keyboard of his Sidekick phone and began to text rapidly when he heard a shrill buzz coming from the door. Before he began to march over to see who it was, Finn beat him to it.

"Hey guys .. –" he heard him freeze for a moment. "Whoa Tina .. You look amazing!" Mike quickly looked to the front door. _Whoa _was right.

"Ouch!" Finn stammered from Mercedes' robust hit. She ran him a death glare. "You look good too Mercedes!"

Still induced by his shameful, provocative thoughts, he remained in a state of shock. It was a vivid flashback to that day in Glee when Kurt gave her a makeover, except this time it was a more grown up, R-rated version. She had on this skin tight strapless dress that was a bold, bright blue that stopped a little shorter than mid-thigh. Her heels looked as if they were stilts but only did justice for her day-long legs. Her lengthy, black hair was wavy and voluminous in that "I'm so bad I make sex hair look hot" kind of way and her eyes were covered with black smoky eye-shadow. To top it off, she had these big, silver dangling earrings that would often brush the top of her shoulders depending on the way she moved. Inhaling a big gulp of air, he shook himself to lessen the intensity of his body. This was going to be a very long, hard night: no pun-intended.

After staring at Tina like a psycho-maniac, she spotted him.

"Hey Mike!" she exuberantly smiled as she speed walked toward him. But due to the length of her shoes, she tripped only for him to catch her horrendous fall. "Oof!" she whimpered. His muscular arms held her up securely while his hands were around her tiny waist. _Down boy_.

"Well hello to you too," chuckling as he lifted her up leisurely. "Why were you late?"

Finding her center of balance, she replied, "Well, I guess you can say because of this." She swiftly twirled as he retrained himself from doing or saying anything relatively creepy.

"You look great." 'Great' was the safest word to use at the moment. Anything more and he would've torn up that fitted dress of hers (with her consent of course).

"I could say the same for you too." Widening her eyes in what appeared to be remembrance of something important, she said, "Oh I'm really sorry to be asking you this, but would it be okay if I stayed at your house after the party? Just for a little if it's okay. My parents are going to the casino and they said they'd be back by tomorrow morning which translates into 6 in the afternoon the next day and well, yeah. But forget I asked if you're tired or something -"

"N-No, it's cool. Lei's sleeping over the Thompsons anyway. I'd appreciate the company."

She grinned happily. "Thank you so much."

"You basically live in my house anyway, so don't worry about it." That was so _not _a lie. "So did you want to join the party in the living room?" He asked politely as she bit her pouted bottom lip playfully, enlarging her seductive eyes. Her new-found confidence was getting more enticing by the second. _What did I do to deserve this kind of punishment?_

"I think I could work with that." She grabbed up his hand and ran out to the party, this time without any falling.

"Dance time!" a few guys whom Tina had never seen before announced. A sudden blast of music came from the loud-speakers through the entire house as people hurried to create their own dance door. Flashing lights covered the now pulsing bodies that were once blinded from the darkness.

20 minutes later on to the fifth song, she now found herself swaying her body with ease mouthing the lyrics with Rachel, Quinn, Kurt and the rest of the Gleeks.

"_I'm more than just an option (Hey, hey, hey), refuse to be forgotten (Hey, hey, hey), I took a chance with my heart (Hey, hey, hey), and I feel it taking over .." _They sang along to the smooth, seductive melody.

"This is my jam!" Mercedes shouted, stopping for a brief moment to express her love for the tune.

"I must agree with you Mercedes. Even if I'm not always encouraging the lack of independence someone has toward their partner, this song is an exception," Rachel said, her wide grin going from ear to ear as she sneaked a wink at Finn. He smiled back knowingly bringing his gigantic body closer to hers, holding onto her tiny waist. The things Tina would give to have something like that.

Veering her eyes from the affectionate couple, she spotted Mike being demented by a pool of skanks wearing dresses that just appeared as synched-down shirts. This did not make Tina happy. The fact that Brittany was a part of this provocative clan didn't help either as a surge of jealousy rushed through her.

The weird thing is that Tina held nothing against Brittany. Matter of fact, she could even rightfully title her as an acquaintance and maybe even a friend. But ever since _he _happened, it's like she had some kind of unshared rivalry with her. She couldn't deny the resentment she felt towards her after that sentimental discussion that one night in the park.

She didn't know if it was the hair, the dress, the shoes or just the searing jealousy but something inside of her led her to march over confidently to Mike and dance with him. As she made her way to his side nudging the rest of the girls to the side, they all made scornful grunts. Mike finally focused all his attention on her, as they danced to the sensual beat.

_I've better find your lovin, I've better find your heart, I've better find your lovin', I've better find your heart, I bet if I give all my love then nothing's gonna tear us apart .._

It was safe to say that this wasn't any elegant ballroom they were doing. Tina was propped in front of Mike while his burning hands explored her mid-torso area. She riskily but captivatingly caressed his sweaty neck and she felt goose bumps oppress his body. There wasn't any space vacant between them, just heavy panting, loud music, body heat and touching: lots and lots of touching.

_It's more than just a mission (Hey, hey, hey), you hear but you don't listen (Hey, hey, hey), you better pay attention (Hey, hey, hey), and get what you've been missing .._

Tina felt as if this was going to lead both of them into some serious trouble, but she could've cared less. As lame as it sounds, this was the closest she'd get to showing Mike what five months of friendship had exactly done to her. If she wasn't mistaken, she was almost certain he enjoyed this as much as she did.

_Too many times I've been wrong, I guess being right takes too long, I'm done waiting, there's nothing left to do but give all I have to you and.._

She finally turned to face him. It was getting harder and harder for her to control herself. Their lips were parted a great deal, taunting each other. There was no more than an inch between their loose mouths and temptation was at its worse for Tina.

_I better find your lovin', I better find your heart, I better find your lovin', I better find your heart, I better find your lovin', I better find your heart! I bet if I give all my love, then nothing's gonna tear us apart._

Fortunately (or unfortunately), the music slowly faded just in time for anything bizarre to happen. They broke away from each other, giving them time to sort themselves before anything else. This night was going to mean insanity.

* * *

Standing by himself in the kitchen, he took a sip of water from his neon-pink plastic cup. Matt walked his way with a devious smirk plastered on his face.

"I saw you and Tina getting pretty close earlier," nudging his shoulder.

Mike gave him a perplexed stare and laughed. "We were just dancing," he innocently said.

Matt scoffed and teasingly hit him on the head. "Right, _just _dancing. You two were _just _grindin' on each other like you were doing the nasty with clothes on, she _just _looked like she was about to murder the girls dancing with you and you _just _imagined all the things you wanted to do to her."

"Look, we're _just _friends." Even after repeatedly telling Matt this simple phrase for the past five months it still made him cringe.

"I'm _just _sayin'. Man, if I had Tina Cohen-Chang dancing with me looking like that? We'd be having our own party upstairs by now!" He threw his hand up, offering a high five but Mike just stared annoyingly. "But that's just me. Later bro." He walked out.

Although he constantly denied it, he kind of knew Matt was right. Even til' now, he thinks about that one night at his house when he was so close to telling her but to his dismay, it never happened. Each day that passes by, it makes it more difficult for him to say anything due to their close friendship. And of course, that sucks for him.

He crumpled his plastic cup and tossed it in the trash can. It was 1:39 AM. He sighed impatiently. Honestly he didn't know what the next step would be or if a step should even be taken. That is until he heard the hyped beat of music transition in a slow, hypnotizing melody. He saw as girls and guys came together in each other's arms, picking their partners carelessly. Suddenly vigilant, he rushed out of the kitchen looking around for her face. Call it weird, but he just really couldn't imagine anyone else dancing with her but him.

* * *

Once again, I'm sorry for making you guys wait for that oh-so sweet moment when Mike and Tina realize their ment to have little Asian babies together LOL. But this story's winding down to the last 5 or so chapters, so just be patient pleaaaaaase. (: I also apologize for just this chapter in general. Not my fave. Coulda done better. Luckily, I'll be updating this story twice a week as said before so I get a chance to redeem myself twice a week. :D The song they were PROVOCATIVELY dancing to was **Find Your Love by Drake**.I really hope you guys liked this chapter! Can't wait to post the next chapter up. Oh, and keep in mind about the new story I'll be publishing after this! Any suggestions, ideas, song ideas for the new story are definitely welcomed. ^_^


	15. But I'm in Heaven Orbiting Around You

**A/N**: Hi fanfic readers! :D For the bajillionth time, THANK YOU, ALL OF YOU, for the support and amazing feedback! Ah, you guys are so cool. So I decided to post this chapter for two reasons: one being that I really really want to post my new story before 2nd season starts which is why I promised to update twice a week, second being that there's a lot of people who are really into this story so thank goodness for that. (: Enough babbling. I really enjoyed writing this chapter. One of my favorite songs featured! And let's take a moment or two to appreciate the fact that Mike and Tina finally have a 2nd page of fanfiction dedicated to them. It's about freaking time … Okay done. Hope you love it. ^_^

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Glee or any of the songs featured in this story.

_Chapter 14 _

He saw as girls and guys moved closer to each other and gently swayed their joined bodies in sync. After moving through a crowd of lip-locking teenagers, he found just the person he was looking for. But when he went rushing toward her he felt an urgent tug on his arm.

"Hi Mike," a blithe voice said.

He turned around eagerly to see Brittany. "Oh, hi Brittany."

"I like this song. I would sing to it but there's a lot of words so I think I just wanna dance to it."

"Oh that's cool," he replied, oblivious to anything but the girl he wanted to be with right now.

She grumbled with a slight frown. "Mike, do you not get it?"

Whoa. That was weird. Brittany just accused him of not understanding something, which only meant that _she _understood something. "Huh?"

"Dance with me."

He widened his eyes finally understanding her gesture. "Oh!" he started. "I'm sorry Britt, but I was about to ask someone else to dance with me."

Gripping onto his bicep harder she pouted. "Why do you always ditch me for that fortune cookie? Like that one time at the movies? That was like the only time I remembered to do something and I was on my medication too. I'm hot. She looks like a pimped-out panda."

Suddenly he felt a little defensive. "Tina's amazing. And aren't you friends with her or something? And the whole movies situation, that was almost 5 months ago Britt. I told you I was sorry and that Tina was going through problems."

Now she was giving him this look that could have rotted the sweet, melodic tune. "Whatever." She deliberately shoved him to the side huffing in irritation. With momentary annoyance, he shrugged it off, reminding himself of his initial goal.

He traced his sight back to her. She sat awkwardly on a wooden stool as Finn and Rachel, Puck and Santana and Kurt, Quinn and Mercedes affectionately danced in the dark. When she finally noticed his presence he shot a smile at her that easily knocked her out of her discomfort.

"Hey there stranger." His hands were in his jean pockets to appear chill and relaxed although he was anything but that.

She animatedly waved. "Hey there." Her high heels tapped to the beat of the music as she hummed lightly. "I love this song .."

Now he wasn't too sure if she was hinting or not, but he desperately wanted to ask her to dance with him. Usually, he'd be the type to ignore whatever gut-feeling he had, but he was pretty sure that if he saw her dance with someone else, he would just about die.

"If you like this song so much," he began. "You wouldn't mind dancing to it, maybe?" He pulled his hands from his pant pockets and chivalrously offered it to her. She seemed surprised, but pleasantly surprised. Tina quickly rocketed from her seat and gladly accepted the offer. They linked arms and vanished to the middle of the dance floor.

It was a little embarrassing how his palms were excessively sweating. He didn't even notice until they were on the floor getting ready to dance and Tina wiped her hands on her dress at the first touch of their palms.

"Sorry about that .." scratching his head nervously. He'd never actually been this nervous before. "Scratch that. I'm _really _sorry about that."

She gave him a settled look then immediately grasped both of his hands in hers. "No; their perfect."

"_As we were driving, you turned your head around and looked right at me, you couldn't see the road and it was scaring me .."_

Tina's hands quickly went around his neck and she gleamed at him. This let them move in closer which made Mike all the more nervous. He was so lost his hands continued to dangle without any direction. Thanks to Tina, she let go of her hold on him momentarily and directed his hands to her waist. She really knew what she was doing.

_.. how beautiful you look when you get crazy. I have never felt so weak .._

"Thanks," he diffidently chuckled. She peacefully grinned as she gently laid her head on his shoulder. It was almost as if she was saying "thank me by giving me a proper slow dance" and that was perfectly fine with him.

_Well maybe I would disappear without you .._

He tried to relax his shoulder when she laid on them but it didn't work. He was too caught up in her.

_Maybe I would fall into the sky .. _

Wow. She smelled really good, like the cross between hot chocolate and flowers but not the ones that give you massive headaches like a sunflower just punched you in the face.

_But I'm in heaven orbiting around you .._

For a brief moment he could feel the hairs of his neck go up most likely due to her caressing his neck with her soft palms. He didn't mind the feeling at all.

_.. And your pretty eyes, your pretty eyes._

A light-bulb went off. He stared at her. She was so peaceful and the absolute opposite of him. It was nice.

_You took the highway, and curbed along the ocean on a Friday .._

"Hey, Tina?" he hauntingly whispered in her ear. She turned her head slowly looking deep into him.

_The sun was falling down and you were shinin' .._

She stole every ounce of breath away from him. At that moment he forgot everything he was going to say.

"Hm?" she muttered.

_The rhythm of the waves was keepin' timing, as you were singing this .._

He shook his head timidly remembering just what he was about to say. "Oh, well not to sound all corny .." he began shyly.

_Maybe I would disappear without you, maybe I would fall into the sky .._

"But you have pretty eyes." He averted his focus to another direction just because he was so scared to see her reaction.

_But I'm in heaven orbiting around you, and your pretty eyes, pretty eyes .._

She noticed him look away and gently moved his head back to her. "Thank you, but really? I never liked my eyes. Their so dark and small .."

L_ook at all the stars, up in the sky, they look alive .._

"No; their perfect just the way they are," he shot back dignified. He couldn't help but feed off this addicting look she was giving him. But this time he didn't turn his head: He stayed looking right back at her.

_I wonder what's on the other side, it's full of life .._

She kissed him. Him, Mike Chang, on the cheek. It may not have been his first kiss nor was it hers, but it sure beat every kiss, every touch, he's felt.

_Maybe I would disappear without you, maybe I would fall into the sky .._

He thinks she can sense just how nervous he is now because his chest just tightened and his skin is speckled with goose bumps when she kissed him but he didn't really care. He just brought her in closer.

_But it's heaven here just orbiting around you and your pretty eyes, pretty eyes .._

Her lips were gentle and soft. They left his skin warm and moist. Now that he knows how they feel, he can't help but wonder what they taste like.

_Maybe I would disappear without you, maybe I would fall into the sky .._

He put her small chin into his hand and tilted her head up. This time, she was the nervous one. Her head subtly trembled. He smiled, leaning over to her most luring feature.

_But I'm in heaven just orbiting around you and your pretty eyes, pretty eyes .._

She tasted like vanilla lip gloss. She tasted like his favorite song on the radio. She tasted like a deep, blue ocean at two in the morning. He kissed her and she tasted like nothing he's ever tasted. She tasted like something he needed.

_But I'm in heaven orbiting around you! And your pretty eyes .._

To his surprise, she kissed him back. Now he was wondering what she thought he tasted like. But at this moment, he was too high off of her to even think a single thought on anything but Tina.

_Pretty eyes .._

He wished he could have that taste on his lips forever.

_Your pretty eyes .._

He wanted to breathe her and have that scent linger on for a lifetime.

_Pretty eyes._

He needed to have _her_.

* * *

Her eyes flickered when he kissed her and they stayed like that the whole time. But either way, whether she had them closed or open, she only saw him.

She desperately wished the song could've lasted for another couple of hours at the very least. But now, the song's over. _And I guess we have to stop_, she supposed.

Once their lips struggled to part, they stared at each other and she wished she could read his mind. That adoring stare he always gives her faded for a quick moment, remembering something of importance. "I'm so sorry but can you just... wait here for a second, or something? I just remembered I had to do something. Just about Leila. I'm so sorry -"

She cuts him off by placing her eager lips onto his just one last time. She lets go and watches as his eyes stayed close and his mouth wide open. She giggled shyly.

"Okay yeah, I'll be back really _really _fast .." he smiled blissfully and ran off.

Laughing to herself happily, she breathed out an, "Oh, boy .."

This whole thing was a little too surreal. It was like this confident, gutsy Tina came out and was probably the one to thank for the fairy tale-like night.

As another slow jam started to play, she decided to sit out and just wait for Mike. Besides, she really doubts anyone would make a more suitable dance partner. Just thinking about it provoked these whole new emotions she'd never even experienced before, but it gave her a sense of empowerment.

There was an open seat in the corner so she rested her tired legs and tried to relax her tense body. The only thing she could think about were all the countless dates, heavy make-out sessions and hand holding they'd be doing. Well, assuming they'd get together after that. If they didn't, she'd seriously result into breaking puppies' necks and harassing 98-year-olds.

While waiting patiently she heard a discreet squeaking noise similar to rolling wheels but she didn't think much of it. Reality hadn't been her closest friend anyhow.

"Hey Tina." A familiar deep voice came out of the blue. But the music was too loud for her to recognize who it'd belonged to.

"Hey you -" As she turned around her unbreakable smile shattered. Standing – or should I say sitting – in front of her was a purple-collared shirt, skinny black suspenders and thin-framed glasses-wearing Artie.

"We should probably talk."

* * *

Yay. :D The song Tina and Mike slow-danced to is called **Pretty eyes by Jason Reeves**. Seriously guys, listen to that song. One of my faves. I even uploaded the recorded version of youtube so you guys could listen to it. (: I apologize for how repetitive the song lyrics were. Winding down to the last 4 or so chapters and they will fluffy. Very, very fluffy. Read, review, but most importantly enjoy my lovelys. :)


	16. What the Heart Wants

**A/N**: Hi guys, again! :) I'm so glad some of you really enjoyed the last chapter! I swear, all your reviews manage to put a big smile on a face, not lying. And those of you who are either anon. reviewers or I'm unable to message, I'd just like to tell you through here that I completely adore your amazing reviews, so thank you so much! :D Here's the next chapter for you all! Hope you like it!

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Glee.

_Chapter 15 _

So far tonight, Tina freak danced with Mike, slow danced with him right after, then made out with him and is now talking to Artie for the first time in almost half a year? As if kissing Mike wasn't a mind-fuck already.

"Have you realized we haven't spoken for nearly five or six months?"

She really didn't want to deal with him but he sort of cornered her. "I guess not," she awkwardly replied. Her eyes wandered through the room impatiently awaiting for her knight and shining armor to save her from this mess of a situation.

"So, I guess this is where the talking part comes in." He moved in closer.

"Okay then. Shoot," Tina smiled warmly. It baffled her why she was being so nice to him. After all he did to her she should've pulled off one of those epic walk-outs but she didn't. She was practically over it.

"Look, Tina. I'm sorry," he pouted, thrashing his arms for added effect. "For how I've treated you and for not listening to you."

She was astounded. All she could do was stare. It's not like she wasn't expecting this to happen the moment he greeted her in a cheap manner, but hearing it was on a whole new level.

"It's okay Artie. I'm over it. Six months is a lot of healing time for a person," she exclaimed thoughtfully. She even gave him a slight grin too.

"That's not the point Tina," he replied frustrated. She was really hoping he wasn't going to say what she dreaded for him to say. "I want it to be like how it was before the stutter thing." He suddenly took her hand in his potently. It sadly brought nostalgic feelings through her, though maybe not all positive.

So maybe she wasn't mad at him anymore. She didn't feel the need to make grunting noises every time she saw his face and she most certainly did not have the need to think about him. Her feeling for him hadn't completely diminished, but the way his smile screams arrogance as if he's so sure he's going to get her back only reminds her why she was gone to begin with.

"Uh .." was all she managed to blurt out. "No. No, no, no, no, _no_."

She felt like she could kick some major ass anytime now. 'No' had probably ranked #2 on her "favorite words" list, #1 being 'yes' for basically conveying that idea when Mike kissed her.

What was even better was the out-right flabbergasted look he had on his face. _Priceless._

But that power went down the toilet when he quickly leaned over and she knew exactly what was going on.

It felt utterly and rightfully wrong for his chapped lips that tasted like beef jerky and cheap tooth paste to be on hers. So, so wrong. And she wanted it to stop, but his heinous wheelchair was pressed against her so tightly she couldn't budge. At that moment all the memories came flooding. All the countless times she'd have to push him everywhere without so much as a 'thank you' or a 'you're awesome.' The times when she'd give all of her to him only for it to be taken for granted. The times he'd put her down making her even more secretly insecure about herself.

Then she remembers all the countless times Mike tells her she's 'amazing', 'great', 'beautiful', 'cool', 'nice,' someone who's "worth more than all the frozen yogurt in the world." The times whenever she'd do one small thing for him only to be lavished with appreciation and affection. All the times she felt so down about herself, he'd prove to her that she's just so much _more._

But right when she was about to push Artie off with all her strength, she spotted him. The guy who told her she had pretty eyes. The guy who was sweating like a pig because she made him _that _nervous. The guy she wanted was standing in front of her witnessing another guy kiss her.

His eyes were squinted and his body still. And he just stopped and stared for a good five seconds until he decided he couldn't take it anymore and ran the other direction. She felt her heart tear into small, worthless pieces.

"Stop it!" she yelped angrily, finally being able to push him off. She shoved him so hard he wheeled backwards a couple of feet.

She rose from her chair instinctively and ran for Mike's direction. In the midst of running, she quickly turned back to look at Artie preparing a big, lengthy speech but turned back around. He wasn't even worth the time.

Now there she was, wandering aimlessly around the Puckerman residence, hints of tears getting in the way of her direction. It's crazy how things changed within a matter of minutes. How talking, nonetheless kissing Artie just proved her feelings for Mike even more – and how Mike probably thought otherwise.

Artie's kiss was so.. gross. It was the simplest word to describe it. His lips were so cracked and stiff. His mouth was cold and wet, similar to an abandon cave sitting beside a polluted beach rotting of dead dolphins. The kiss she shared with him in the hall way right before the stutter confession was admittedly nice and sweet, but it still had nothing on Mike's consoling lips. The way he softly slipped his tongue on her quivering bottom lip. The way he tasted like cherry Chapstick. How he tasted like the first pop of bright color when the sun rose. He tasted like warmth. He tasted like the exaggerated emotions you feel when your favorite fictional characters of a book finally get together. He tasted like everything she imagined he'd taste like except better, because this time it was real.

* * *

It was 2:23 AM. Mike recalled telling her that they'd leave for his house at 2:40. Of course, this was all before they grinded, slow danced then made out _then _found her and Artie making out. Things would've probably played out a little differently if he was aware of that knowledge.

But from all people, _why Artie? _That jack ass who broke her heart. He could've sworn Tina was over him but then again, he was so blinded by his own feelings he was probably a bit biased. She could've waited a little longer to come running back into his arms though. Maybe at least a whole half an hour would've been good.

He checked his cell phone for the 48th time. This time it read 2:41 AM. He anticipated the more-than-awkward car ride, nonetheless the even more awkward time they'd spend at his house alone. He debated whether he should go inside and look for her but he couldn't muster the courage to do so. Instead, he texted her.

"_Im outside. you can go to the car now." _

It took him a lifetime to think of that one single text. Ranging from 'I'm at the car waiting for you' to 'go outside now' to 'hurry up and stop making out with your boyfriend', he finally settled with the original message. Sure he was angry, yes he was hurt, but he was still Mike. She was still Tina.

"_O ok, thanks for waiting." _His heart jumped at the first sight of her text. He was a nervous-wreck. Shortly after, she texted him once more. "_And we really need to talk .. im so sorry but I swear ill explain. promise. ttyl then."_

_Vroooooom. _He started the engine solely focusing on the road instead of Tina's innocent yet guilty face. This was going to be one long car ride.

The radio was turned off, neither of them speaking and to make it worse he could sense her piercing stares the whole time. He'd tried to seem emotionless but a glimpse of sorrow would reflect through his eyes. He would snap out of it, but Tina could see through him.

"I'm so sorry .." she spoke timidly, breaking the discernable silence. "But I swear, he kissed _me _and I tried to fight back but his wheelchair was so heavy he barely budged!" slightly yelping as he heard her quietly sniffling.

Why did she have to do this to him? The moment a teardrop falls she always has him reeling in so quickly. In all honesty, he sort of already forgave her the moment she said the word "sorry" because, well, it was Tina. Tina never lied and if she did he'd know.

"I have no feelings for him. How could I..." Her stare fell to her lap then to the side mirrors, falling down to her feet. Basically everywhere but him, and now his head was slowly gravitating to her. "Because you .. There's you. It's always you."

He now found himself preoccupied from the road and wanting to gaze at her pretty face for decades. What a good driver _he _proved to be.

Taking a big gulp of air in before saying anything, he spoke fearfully. "Please don't be lying."

She looked up at him, startled from the sound of his voice. "I'm not."

Now pulled up on his drive way with the engine turned off, silence became the loudest amongst the two. They should be getting out of the car but they're not. They're just glued to the mauve, faux-leather seats and he _wants _to say something but he can't find the words to begin.

"Okay, well, I guess we should go inside now .." lightly slapping his knees and opening the car door.

"Right." She did the same. Together, they slowly walked into the empty house.

* * *

The two of them went up the staircase into Mike's bedroom, Tina anticipating what was to happen. Even if she had been honest and really did try to stop Artie from kissing her, it took a toll on him like she imagined it would. He didn't even seem mad, but broken. She wanted to take that all away.

Now settled in his room, Mike sat down on his bed and cupped his face with his hands. He sighed. "I don't know," was all that came out of his mouth, staring back at Tina who's feet were paved next to the door. She didn't know what to say.

"Tina I just .. really really care for you. I want you. A lot. And I have a bad feeling that I probably need you more than you need me. It's scary. _Really _scary."

The sincerity of his words made her heart pound so strongly she thought she was going to come flying across the room. She doesn't really remember ever being loved this much. It was to the point where he feared losing her already even if she knew that's the last thing that would happen. But still she didn't know what to say. Then again, actions have always been more her thing anyway.

She marched right up to him from the entrance to what seemed like the longest walk in the world and looked him deep in his dark almond eyes. Apparently, he was just as nervous as she was but she remained confident. Gently placing her right hand on the back of his head, she carefully tugged his smooth hair. Her left hand occupied his left cheek growing with warmth. Her lips collided with his while she was bent over and him still sitting on his bed, body stiffening.

And although she'd kissed him before, it was like a whole different experience, because she feels right. For once in her life she's in something good.

He gently pulls her landing her on the cushiony bed but that doesn't stall them one bit. He just continues to kiss her dotingly maneuvering his body on top of hers, allowing his consoling hands wherever they'll fall. Quiet whimpers fill the silence. His chest subtly rubbed against hers so that she felt his heart beating rapidly. She can't help but wonder if he can feel her heart beating just as fast, because she's pretty convinced hers is beating quicker and harder than his. And for once, she's okay with that.

* * *

Here you go guys! There's only going to be 2 more chapters of this story. ): Sadness. Just a heads-up, next chapter is VERRRYYYY heavy. But like, in a good, hot kinda heavy. ;D Just like you guys have asked for hehe. Hope you guys liked!


	17. And We'll Make Love Make Magic

**A/N**: Loooooove, and I mean LOVE the support I get from this story! (: You guys are so nice. Reading your reviews always motivates me to keep writing. Well here's the 2nd to last chapter. **Citrus Alert? **Is that what it's called? When a story's really hot and heavy and what not? Well yeah, that's what this chapter is. Also I apologize for any mistakes in grammar I make! I always re-read each chapter aloud before posting to catch any errors but sometimes I miss a couple so feel free to correct me anytime! Would definitely make it easier on me and for future readers. :D Anywhoo, here it is. Hope you enjoy!

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Glee.

_Chapter 16_

He tosses his light gray button-up on the carpeted floor and patiently assists Tina with her fitted dress, fiddling with the fastened zipper. This was happening, and she wanted it to. She didn't really picture her first time like this at all though. Oddly enough, this beats any of the made-up, cliché scenarios she had played out in her ingenuous head. Even if the sensual candle lights were absent as well as the rose petals and champagne, the perfect guy was present. And really, that's all that mattered.

_Oh my God. _That's all she felt, thought, and breathed every time he'd run his soothing hands on her bare torso. This unhealthy state of being out of control was all so foreign to her but she was glad she'd discovered it. It's a good kind of uninhibited feeling though, like she's so in touch with everything inside of her and him .. He generated all of this. Oh. My. _God._

Her dress is now lying right beside his dress shirt on the floor, as he continued to massage her exposed thigh in between her legs. Funny as it sounds, the whole time she'd been thinking of the perfect theme song for this moment. After watching numerous romantic movies, she couldn't help but wonder what soft tune would be playing if they lived in a movie. Shortly after the perfect song just happened to pop in her mind. She desperately wanted to hum the tune out or even sing, but obviously that would be kind of weird. So she just sings it in her head, smiling at how perfect this all was. _I know I was wrong to jump straight on into this picture so pretty, but he is so pretty to me .._

* * *

She's moaning and whimpering and he can't help but feel amazing knowing he's making her like this. The way he's touching her and kissing every inch of her partially naked body is the cause of her constant 'Mike's and 'oh's. Just when he thought she couldn't be any more beautiful, she always surprised him.

Tina sits back up for a brief moment, slowly synching up where the blankets fold on the top part of the mattress, and he knows what she means. All he ever wants is to make her happy and make her feel amazing so he follow hers lead, wanting it just as badly as she does. He lifts the blankets up kindly assisting her. Now in a comfortable position he continues to kiss her, feeling the inside of him quivering insanely.

But in the midst of him tampering with the clasp of her bra, he pauses for a second. "Are you sure?"

Even if he was so sure of what he wanted, he also wanted to make that this experience would be just as special to him as it was to her. Anything less than that, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.

Catching her breath, she sits up and looks at him with such a deep stare he can feel the weight of it slowly pushing him down. She smiles at him, eyes glimmering with compassion and though not a word is said, he understands her perfectly.

She quickly (but skillfully) kisses his tanned neck, and soon every whimper, every moan she made was relevant to him. Maneuvering her body right on top of him, she slowly begins to kiss his chest, lightly brushing her fingers onto them.

"Tina," he struggles to whimper. Oh gosh, he wanted to scream to the top of his lungs if he could. The sensation was too much for him. He gets a hold of the back of her black, lacy bra and looks at her making sure it was okay. She nods confidently.

As the two sat up preparing for what they both wanted, Mike places his hand on hers adoringly. That was one of the sweetest epiphanies they'd both had for one another. Deliberately veering his eyes from their entwined fingers he looks up at her pretty face and smiles. She seems a little surprised by his affectionate actions, but squeezes his hand gently and smiles the same way he is. There wasn't any panting, heavy breathing nor any heaving touching, only their hands in one another. At that moment, he knew she was the best choice he ever made.

"Mike," she uncontrollably squeals into his neck as he pushes himself into her even more. He likes the way she whimpers his name like that, the way she's digging her fingers into his sweaty back. He starts to explore her delicate body with his hands, reaching under the dark covers. She's breathing even harder now and kisses his neck vigorously and he knows he's doing all the right things.

He continues to move himself into her and yells out of sheer satisfaction. "Tina .." he tiredly whispers in her ear. Her breasts linger onto his firm chest.

"Uh!" she pleads just as she reached her highest point. Allowing her to rest he collapses right beside her, taking her weak arm into his grasp and lightly kissing her feeble fingers. Tina was still writhing in pleasure trying to get out anything but incoherent mumbles from her mouth.

Mike calmly and curiously lowers his frail body so that his head is laid in the middle of her bare chest, right where her heart lies.

"Your heart .. it's being fast," he amusingly says looking up at her. Finally collecting herself, she chuckles.

"It's kind of been like that for the past five months .. you just haven't been close enough to hear it," smiling thoughtfully stroking his hair.

He looks up at her from her chest and she stares right back at him, a sweet silence falling in between the two.

"I love you."

* * *

Those three little yet imperative words gave her pale skin shivers. If her heart hadn't completely melted away the world did not make sense. She felt every syllable harmoniously ringing in her ear, echoing ever so slowly. Every cliché on Earth made complete and utter sense because the butterflies in her stomach won't seem to go away, each word that fights to flow out of her mouth just translates illogically and she's almost certain her heart is racing abnormally fast. For once, life seemed a little too perfect for her to sustain sanity. The scariest part of it all was waiting for the day this would be gone.

As touched as she was, any words that came through her mouth would ruin this surreal moment. Instead, she signals him to lay by her side, patting the bedding to her left. He follows accordingly.

The moment he sits up leaning his back against the chilling headboard, she lays her head on his perspiring chest placing her hands across his body, where he laces his fingers fitting her hand perfectly. It was like her body fit his form perfectly. Her supple legs entangle with his while he soothingly brushes her messy hair from her face, tucking it right behind her left ear.

Now, she was wrapped tightly into his muscular arms. Even as she looks down and avoids staring at his eyes, she can feel his stare weighing her down heavily. The realization played a small smile onto her moist lips.

"Stop staring at me."

"How come?"

"Because it's kind of freaking me out," she giggles, bringing her head to look at him.

He beams back at her, kissing her forehead covered with beads of sweat. "So this whole sister, brother thing is over with right? Incest kind of crosses the line for me."

Quietly laughing to herself, she stares at their intertwined fingers, kissing the back of his hand. "Right." Noticing the multiple friendship bracelets around his wrist, she fondles with them playfully. "If the sister and brother thing goes, then what would we call these? Would they just be called bracelets?"

Wistfully staring into space, he replies, "That's a good question. I guess the whole English dictionary has to change in our favor."

"Oh, definitely."

Soon enough, her bright eyes closed peacefully still enveloped in his embrace. This would all to have to process over a good night's rest. But really, best birthday ever.

* * *

Agh, I so loved writing this chapter! The song she sings in her head is called **Your Song by Kate Walsh.** There wasn't supposed to be any featured songs but LISTEN TO THAT SONG. ITS PERFECT FOR THIS SCENE. Anyway I hope you guys loved this as much I did writing it. Sorry if its kinda short for your taste. I actually added a lot more than I originally had. Next chapter is the last one. ): ACK. I will definitely shed a tear typing the last chapter. Read, review, whatever, just enjoy. (:


	18. Darling, You Are the Only Exception

**A/N**: Oh. My gosh. THE LAST CHAPTER. Getting a little emotional typing this. ): In the end of this chapter, I'll definitely express my gratitude for you all. My first ever fanfic .. crazy, isn't it? I'd just like to repeat again that if you guys have any other ideas, suggestions or requests for future Tina and Mike fanfics, don't be shy! :D I'd love to hear new ideas! Well anywhooo, I hope all of you lovelys enjoy the last chapter of Smiles, Cries & Sweet Silences! Here it goes!

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Glee.

_Chapter 17_

The sun hadn't risen yet, leading the streets to be lit by the towering light posts, brightening the dim atmosphere. Everything stayed still. The only sound to be heard was Mike's steady breathing as he was serenely sleeping. It was six-twenty in the morning and although her lack of sleep could've easily affected her, she was wide awake. She'd been up since six just thinking. What she was about to do made her ache in more ways than one. She felt it was only right.

She vigilantly crept out of bed wary of waking the peaceful boy. Bits of eyeliner and mascara were encased in the creases of her eyes and her hair was all over the place. Looking to the ground for something to dress her naked body in, she debated whether or not to slip into Mike's gray button-up he had on last night. The guilt inside of her would've just eaten her alive knowing she was preparing to leave him alone while wearing something of his. Instead, she took all the more effort to put on her constricted, strapless dress from the party. She inhaled hesitantly. This process couldn't have been more gruesome.

On the table right next to where he was sleeping, Tina found his cell phone lying beside him. She tip-toed quietly and quickly snatched it, walking through the chilly hallway into the bathroom.

_Record_. She shifted her body to feel more comfortable on the granite counter though she furtively knew that was never to happen. "Hi, M-Mike. Well, um .."

_Stop._ Her mind went blank contemplating on just what to say in this little video she was making. Why she was leaving him, she didn't know. Fear always gets in her way.

_Okay, let's try this again_. For the fourth time, she hit the little ball of his phone to record again. _Record_.

This time not a word came through her mouth, just a deliberate frown, some saddening whimpers and an avoiding stare. And right when she opens her mouth, unsure of what to say, tears start rolling down her pale cheeks though she doesn't press stop. All she's recorded so far are some measly ten seconds of her crying unbearably. Mortified, she finally caught her breath and pathetically muttered out, "I'm sorry."

She's sorry she's such an idiot. She's sorry he was going to be alone when he woke up. She's sorry he told her he loved her while she was too afraid to say it back. She's sorry she loves him but is scared to let him know how much she does. _Stop._

She frolicked through his North Face backpack borrowing a black ball-point pen and post-its. Leaning against the bare wall clicking the pen she sloppily scribbled _check your videos._ His reaction replayed through her head like a sad part of a movie where you can't help but cry and feel your heart break into pieces. This caused wet teardrops to smudge her writing, making it even more blurred and harder to read than before. She stuck the sticky post-it on her side of the bed, trying her hardest to not look at his face.

Gently closing the door came the chilly air clashing into her. It made the little hairs of her body stiffen up. Every puff of breath appeared visibly in front of her. The sky was a little brighter by now, seeing as she took at least half an hour to get herself through the door. She still couldn't see as why she was doing this to him. He undeniably loved her in every possible way, but she had to be so complicated.

She walked slowly through the quiet street they'd walked through numerous times allowing memories to flood her scattered mind.

The tears hit her once again. It kind of sucks crying in the cold. The moisture of the tears have this effect against your skin and the roughness of the air adds onto the fact that you can barely catch a breath.

Trying to avoid the meddling feelings she began counting how many houses she passed by now. _One .. Three .. Four .. Six .._

In the midst of her incessant counting, one particular house caught her attention. It was a big, two-story house the color of a rich dark brown with a healthy looking lawn. It was the only house that seemed to be awake. There was an inclusive window exposing what appeared to be their living room. Inside were a couple of kids that looked about the same age as Leila while a tall man had his back to the window.

Tina had her feet paved to the sidewalk examining the house, amused. It was such a pretty picture. The guy, the girl, the kids, the family; she's never seen a couple so happy, and it scared her knowing she'd never have that especially at that moment.

Suddenly the tall man whom looked like he was in his mid-30's turned around only to see her standing outside of their residence like a stalker. They both stared at each other appallingly, shock and fret captivating her body. If this man was on the verge of calling the police on her, she really wouldn't be surprised. Though his facial expression softened, transitioning into a calmer, almost empathetic face. It kind of threw her off. It's almost as if he knew her in some way.

What really surprised her was how he continued to observe her. It wasn't in a creepy, "I'm going to kidnap you now" way though, but more in a "you look like someone I know" kind of way. And the surprises kept coming when the man jerked his head directing her to the opposite direction she'd been walking, mouthing out the words "go back."

She really didn't know what to make out of this. This complete stranger who she's not even sure she knows is making decisions for her, and she was more than a little confused. She even turned her head looking around to see if he was really directing his words at her, and he was. Then she thought. The only thing she _could _think about at that time. And even if she wasn't all too certain if what he said was relevant, it hit her. He made his point and even if it took a complete stranger for her to realize what an idiot she was being, he was right. _What am I doing?_

She ran faster than she'd ever had before to the point where she questioned why she ever failed any of the runs they had to do in PE. All the times she'd been afraid of getting hurt that the moment she found someone who'd done the complete opposite she panicked. She was literally a walking – or running – cliché. The scared girl that cowers when something good finally comes her way. She couldn't catch a single breath but stopping to inhale air was the very last thing on her mind. He was worth a lot more than proper breathing at that point anyhow.

* * *

Stretching out his limbs, he yawned loudly. Looking at the old-fashioned clock jammed onto the pea-green painted wall, he read 6:43. He didn't really want to wake up but a slamming noise woke him.

He turned to his side imagining Tina to be dead asleep but only found an empty side and a tiny though noticeable post-it. He couldn't make sense of it all seeing as he just woke up, but it made him worry, and his stomach had a sharp agony that seemed all too familiar.

He picked up the tiny note that read _check your videos._ Obeying, he noticed his phone had been shifted to the other side of the table. Every little thing just screamed that something was wrong but he knew his occasional observances got the best of him so he tried to ignore the eerie flutter he had.

Then right when he was about to press the tiny icon that had the day's date on it, he was interrupted by the loud steps shuffling through the hall way. He looked to the hallway only to find her running down the deserted hall.

She heaved herself right on top of him with a big smile plastered on her face that relieved the awkward pain he had in his stomach as she breathed heavily.

Snatching the phone from his grasp, she collected her breath enabling her to speak. "Well, since you're awake, I guess you won't be needing this."

She tampered with the buttons of his cell phone and slammed the top part close, placing it on the table next to her. He lifted the blankets so she could fill in the vacant space.

Noticing her clothing, he curiously stared at her. "Where'd you go?"

"I just had to get something," she began. "But it's okay now. I realized I didn't need it anymore."

He nodded understandingly.

"But the video. It was saying .." she calmly started. "How amazing you are. And that every time I'm with you, I feel like I'm about to throw up butterflies. And that you're the s-sweetest guy I know. And how you're the only person who genuinely makes me stutter because I get unnaturally nervous around you. And when you cry I'd do just about anything to make you stop. And every time we're quiet and well, you're probably thinking how awkward it is, it's because I'm just thinking about how much I want to kiss you."

The two ironically fell into a comforting silence, receiving chuckles from both of them. They smiled at each other as Tina went out to kiss him on the mouth tenderly.

"I'm still a little sleepy," he offered, putting his arms around her. She turned to the same side he was facing so that his embrace was more secure. He wrapped her tightly in his hug.

And just when he closed his eyes replaying everything she'd just told him, seconds away from sleep, she blurted out, "Oh!", remembering something of importance.

"Hm?" he replied, winking out one eye open to pay his attention to her.

Turning so they were face-to-face, she gazed at him keenly. There was only about half an inch of space between them. "I love you."

Her energetic body quickly turned to her previous posture as he experienced that pleasing warmth in him, his grin extending effortlessly.

"I love you too," he says, because it's the most honest thing he's felt and said. The two of them lace their fingers together, falling back to sleep.

* * *

AHHHHH. This story is now officially complete! Might I just say that I really adored writing this chapter. You don't really hear Tina directly open up to anyone in this story and even if she's pretty open with Mike, she doesn't really show her feelings to him so I thought that was really sweet to write her saying those things. I also had to add her leaving him also, because it's pretty apparent that Tina is the type to do so especially in this story. OH, and if you guys didn't catch on, the man who told her to go back was Mr. Thompson (OC from Ch. 11). (: Amazing man, isn't he?

Get ready for extensive blabbering! I just wanted to point out my **lovely supporters**, because cmon' now .. **73** story alerts, **32 **favorites, **2 **communities, **105** (I love you guys D;) reviews, and **16,464 **hits? I can't .. even .. Omg. The feedback and support I received from this story was way too much for me. You guys are so amazing, and are one of my definite motivations for writing! And don't worry, I will keep satisfying your love for Tike (Tina/Mike). ;D Remember, don't be afraid to suggest any ideas for my new stories to come and I'll even take requests if you guys have any! Though I can't promise you that if you're requesting multi-chap fics it'll be up asap because I prefer writing stories one at a time but still! Thank you guys so much again. (: _yourdorkalways_


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